One profession that stands far above all others is that of fireman. While many may think this is a blue collar job or basic civil service they would be wrong. These men and women risk their lives on a daily basis to save others. When you see a building engulfed in flames the natural reaction is to run in the other direction. For the fire fighter their response is the polar opposite; they run in. For a long time little boys would dream of becoming a fireman when they grew up but only a few carry that through to their adult years. Like most people I have always had the greatest respect for all of them but that opinion was greatly reinforced when I married a fire chief’s daughter. I would sit on my father-in-law’s boat fishing with him and listen to his stories about his thirty fives years on the job. Some of the things he casually told me about stunned me. He described genuine acts of heroism as if it was just another day at the office and from his perspective they were. As far as heroic jobs go firemen have gotten the short end for a long time. Most movies and television series concentrate on the police using the fire department as little more than extras. As such few films of show have placed fire fighters in the spot light. In films one stands out as the definitive fireman’s movie; ‘Backdraft’. Based on my father-in-law’s chats it was realistic and true to life in most ways. At least personally this has set the bar very high for any depiction of fire fighters in film for me. I had this in mind when I watched ‘Smoke Jumper’. Perhaps it was these very deep seated personal feelings that affected my view but the film just didn’t seem to ring true. While it showed the men and women who take on fire like most of us push paper at a desk but it didn’t capture the degree of danger or the type of person who takes on this profession. It is a made for television action flick that just happen to use fire fighters as a cast of characters. The production could have used a couple of real firemen to help vet the action and story for the film. It is a passable action flick but there is a nagging feeling that it could have been a lot more. It is a shame that potential is wasted like this especially when the people depicted in the film are worthy of a much better presentation.

Handling the screenplay was Jeff Stephenson. Previously he had three dramatic shorts and a documentary to his credit. He has a basically good story here but it has a sufficient number of plot holes to hinder its credibility. The strongest aspect of the tale is the choice of the particular sub set of fire fighters, the titular smoke jumpers. These are among the toughest of this rugged and brave profession. It is their job to parachute into raging forest fires to combat the blaze from the ground. The operation is more akin to a military operation than even the usual fire fighters with a coordinated ground assault to air support. They specialize in some of the most remote locations possible under inferno conditions. They are expert in fire fighting techniques but have the added difficulty of having to know their way around parachuting. Because of the isolated locations and the ongoing blaze they are frequently cut off from any and all possible help; they go into danger knowing that help is a long way off. This also means that they have to carry everything they could possible need fort the task at hand on their backs. If you ever have a chance to put on the outfit used by urban fire fighters you would be amazed just how heavy the gear is. Magnify that a few fold and that is what a smoke jumper has to carry on a routine basis. In this story the central character is Kristin Scott (Brooke Burns). She is a fire fighter like her father who is a captain for the department. Through a set of circumstances Kristin is blamed for the death of her dad just before his retirement. That plus the fact that she was the only woman in the department resulted in undue and basically unfair pressure on her. She resigns from her position with the fire department. She feels pressure to prove her merit to the men of the department and herself so she takes on the toughest aspect of the job, smoke jumping. There are several tried and true elements in this story. One is the journey of the hero, or in this case the heroine. It is also ripped from the theories of mythological scholar Joseph Campbell. In this instance Kristin has to journey away from her familiar surroundings to find what she is capable of doing. She has to do this to reaffirm the family name and show that she is worthy to carry on those traditions. While Burns is a capable actress in softer roles she is miscast here. They should have gone for a more athletic young woman for the role to enhance the believability of the film.

Directing the movie is John Terlesky. He is a veteran character actor who has been steadily employed for over two decades now. He also has been transitioning into the director’s chair for awhile with a combination of television and film work. Several of his films have been those Saturday night special flicks for the Sci-Fi channel. He has also directed episodes of some popular TV shows including ‘Grey’s Anatomy’, ‘Ugly Betty’ and ‘Boston Legal’. This resume does demonstrate a proficiency in his craft and his flexibility when it comes to genres to work in. For the most part he handles this film well but the script and casting are working against him at every turn. He divides the story into the standard three acts. In the first we see the events that lead to Kristin’s isolation from her peers due to the death of her father. Then he moves into the need for redemption and Kristin joining the smoke jumpers. Predictably in the third act she is called upon to save the day and gain acceptance by her fellow fire fighters. While Terlesky has the talent to do well in this field he is too tied to his television episode and made for cable flicks. His style is straight from TV as one might expect. Hopefully he will grown and break away from his roots building upon his experiences instead of being bound by them. The film is unfortunately timelier that ever. In recent years there has been an increase in the number of wild fires in the western part of the country especially California. The exploits of smoke jumpers are in the news and this film should have done more to provide a realistic tribute to these courageous people.

The DVD is distributed by First Look Studios which does have a reputation for independent films. While this is not the finest item in their catalog it is a reasonable popcorn flick if you can muster a lot of suspension of disbelief.