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"Don't you threaten my family, or I'll get angry. And you don't want to see me angry."

That's not a quote from Firewall, but it may as well be. Richard Loncraine's by-the-numbers thriller casts Harrison Ford as yet another character who furrows his brow and defends his wife and kids against villains.

If that quote did come from Ford, though, he'd only be half right. Bad guys don't want to see him angry, but audiences certainly do. And Ford obliges them once again with his typically gruff performance, this time as a computer security expert for a Seattle bank.

But there's a problem. In most of Ford's previous action flicks, he was working from an admirable script. Here, according to Christian film critics, the screenplay careens between the familiar and the ridiculous, and Ford, playing husband to Virginia Madsen and father to two youngsters, is reaching the point where he could play a convincing grandfather. (USA Today's Claudia Puig says Ford is running the risk of becoming "as a caricature of his younger self.")

Peter T. Chattaway (Christianity Today Movies) says Firewall "echoes several of Ford's better-known films, such as Patriot Games and Air Force One. Once again, bad guys threaten his wife and children, and he does all the growling and punching that it takes to keep his family safe. The climactic fight scenes, which feature imperiled children and take place in an isolated locale, are reminiscent of Witness; and there are even elements of The Fugitive. But by bringing those other films to mind, Firewall underscores its own weaknesses; it simply lacks the firepower, the iconic status, the cultural subtext and the engaging supporting actors that made Ford's other suspense flicks so much fun."

Christian Hamaker (Crosswalk) says, "Firewall goes from the formulaic to the preposterous before limping to a violent but predictable conclusion. … Just when you suspect the film has bottomed out, the filmmakers bring back the family dog for an absurd plot development, and put the asthmatic son in jeopardy once more. Cue the car chase and massive explosion, and, of course, a big fight between Jack and his tormentor, Cox. The only remaining question is just how grisly that encounter will be. The end result is disturbing, feeding the audience's desire for justice by providing a visceral, ugly payoff."

Marcus Yoars (Plugged In) says viewers will find this all very familiar. "[The movie] comes complete with a cold-blooded, suave Euro-baddie, a dim-witted, short-fused baddie and, of course, the 'sensitive' baddie whose downfall is his sympathy for his captives. In other words, this is not Syriana." Still, Yoars admits he enjoyed the outcome—but not "the foul language—particularly misuses of the Lord's name—and instances of too-graphic violence."

Harry Forbes (Catholic News Service) seems happy with the film, calling it "solid suspense … Loncraine sustains a white-knuckle pace throughout." And in spite of implausibilities that other critics have noted, Forbes says "Ford makes you believe his plight all the way."

Mainstream critics have no trouble breaking down this Firewall.

Curious George , Margaret and H.A. Rey's beloved children's tale about a mischievous monkey and the man who captured him, has been adapted for the big screen without turning the story into an age-inappropriate disaster stuffed full of pop-culture references. Critics are assuring parents that their young children will be thoroughly entertained.

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February (Web-only) 2006, Vol. 50