The Towering Inferno is a 1974 disaster movie directed by John Guillermin, starring Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, and Faye Dunaway. The movie is based on two books, The Tower by Richard Martin Stern and The Glass Inferno by Thomas N. Scortia and Frank M. Robinson.
The movie takes place in a recently built 138-story building called the Glass Tower, located in San Francisco. The building is owned by architect Doug Roberts (Newman), who discovers several safety hazards during the construction of the building. On the night of the grand opening party, a short circuit in the building's electrical system causes a fire to break out on the 81st floor. The fire quickly spreads, and the building's automatic fire suppression system fails, leaving the building's occupants trapped.
The fire department arrives, led by Chief O'Hallorhan (McQueen), who soon realizes the extent and danger of the fire. Roberts and O'Hallorhan work together to evacuate as many people as possible while trying to control the fire. However, due to the building's poor construction, the firefighters face multiple challenges, including malfunctioning elevators, collapsing floors, and the fire reaching the building's top floors.
As the situation becomes increasingly dire, it becomes clear that a helicopter rescue is the only hope for the remaining survivors stranded on the building's roof. Roberts teams up with a daring helicopter pilot (Richard Chamberlain) to attempt a dangerous rescue operation, while O'Hallorhan tries to buy them enough time to complete the rescue.
The Towering Inferno is a classic disaster movie that captures the suspense, danger, and heroism of the situation. The movie was a critical and commercial success, earning three Academy Awards and becoming one of the highest-grossing films of 1974.