The Fall Guy
The Fall Guy
Stars: Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Hannah Waddingham and Teresa Palmer
Director: David Leitch
Scriptwriter: Drew Pearce from “The Fall Guy” by Glen A. Larson
Composer: Dominic Lewis
Cinematography: Jonathan Sela
Entertainment 360/Universal Pictures
Rating: PG 13 for action sequences and violence
Running Length: 125 Minutes
Oh, the world of the stunt person. Notice, I did not write “stunt man” because women have jobs in this dangerous occupation, also. Have you wondered just how those amazing acts of bravery come about? The James Bond, Indiana Jones and “Mission Impossible” stunts of cars going off bridges, speed chases on city streets and hanging from an airplane wing? This is the film for you, “The Fall Guy” starring Ryan Gosling, explains many things, like a magician opening a bag of tricks and letting the audience see all. In this movie, Gosling plays the character of a stunt man with humor and courage. Someday there will be a category in the Oscar for stunt people. If the title of “Fall Guy” sounds familiar, Lee Majors starred in a 1980’s television series years ago, about a stunt man. Director David Leitch has also directed "Atomic Blonde" and "Deadpool 2." He is a former stunt double for actors Brad Pitt and Matt Damon.
“The Fall Guy” means two things here, falling for a line and falling on purpose. Your dream is to go to Hollywood and be a stunt person if you can’t be an actor. How many bones can you stand to break at one time? When your stunt suit finishes burning and you hear the words “try again,” you wonder if it is worth it
“The Fall Guy,” explores the lives of stunt people and the minute detail that has to be worked out before each stunt. No, it is not a tutorial and don’t try this at home or on the road, even though it looks exciting. Ryan Gosling (“Barbie”) takes on the role of Colt Seavers who is the stunt man for a famous actor, Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson from "Bullet Train") Something goes wrong and Colt walks away from Hollywood and his girlfriend, Jody (Emily Blunt from "Oppenheimer") Time goes by and we find Colt working in a Mexican café. Someone from Hollywood reaches out to him that his former girlfriend is now directing a movie (“Metalstorm”) in Australia. Colt goes there only to find no one wants him. Since the Ryder has disappeared. Colt’s job is to find him and get him back on this set. Now things get interesting including a dead body, Colt being attacked, still looking for Tom, who is behind all the shenanigans and it includes Gale (Hannah Waddington from "Ted Lasso") who is Jody’s producer,
First of all, the stunts are fantastic and the audience is right there with the people involved in the action. Jumping onto a flying helicopter, car chases, car rolling over, fights and you name it. All in a day’s work. Ryan Gosling has quips and eagerness to go onto the next stunt. The quips come easy and the banter between Gosling and Emily Blunt is sharp. With the addition of a third person, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, humor goes a long way. Cinematography by Jonathan Sela is top-notch and gives you an idea of how the camera people work closely with the stunt people. Music has to go with this, and soundtrack by Dominic Lewis is there on time. Yes, the life of a stunt double may look interesting on screen, but what goes on behind the scenes is like the Keystone Kops.
Copyright Marie Asner 2024
