The Fall Guy Movie Review

 

The Fall Guy

Synopsis: Colt Seavers (Gosling) is a stuntman who having left the business for a year is drafted back into service when the star of a mega-budget studio movie goes missing.

Director: David Leitch

Stars: Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, Hannah Waddingham & Aaron Taylor-Johnson

Runtime: 1 hour 54 mins

Genre: Action Rom-Com

Growing up I absolutely adored "The Fall Guy" with Lee Majors together with it's iconic title song "The Unknown Stuntman" (sang my Majors himself) it was required Saturday dinner time viewing.

So when I heard they were doing a movie version (Which had been trapped in development hell for years) I thought "oh here we go..." However I enjoyed the various trailers so that was a positive sign. 

The Fall Guy is Gosling's second turn as a Hollywood stunt performer, his first being Drive which for those of you who have seen it will agree is a whole different movie. 

The Fall Guy opened to rave reviews at SXSW, and currently has an 86% on Rotten Tomatoes.

However is the movie as good as I'd hoped? Let's break it down..

Story and Plot

Choosing to tell a different story from the iconic 80's TV show, the movie which at the start see's Gosling's Colt Seavers out of action after an on-set injury (which is the movie's opening actioner). Sees him drawn back in to serve as key stuntman on sci-fi epic Metalstorm (Think Dune meets High Noon) to Tom Ryder (Taylor-Johnson) the movie's main star. The problem is the movie, which is directed by Colt's old flame Jody (Blunt) is missing said main star and it's down to Colt to try and find him. 

My overall thoughts...

Kicking off the summer movie season in earnest, The Fall Guy is an absolute blast and did not disappoint. You may well see The Fall Guy as an action film, a rom-com or even a mystery film. It is in truth all of the above, but what it really is, is a love-letter to Hollywood's unsung heroes, the stuntmen and women who make the movie stars what they are. 

It ticks all the boxes, engaging story with some nice twists, great script written by Drew Pearce (MI: Rogue Nation), exciting grounded action, adorable chemistry between Gosling & Blunt, as well as being a funny movie. 

As a lover of cinema, I loved how the movie also served as a clever meta insight into how movies are made. Referencing real life actors, showing a movie's over reliance on CGI, using terms such as deepfake and highlighting the often tenuous relationship between cast, crew and studio. The movie even subtly references the tragedy on the set of Rust.  

My only downsides were after the opening action scene, it takes a while for the things to pick up and it felt a tad long towards the end.

Cast

Rivals in last summer's Barbenheimer, this is Gosling and Blunt's first movie together, but I'm sure it won't be their last, their chemistry is off the charts. Audiences who tuned into the Oscars back in March, may have caught a glimpse of this chemistry as they honoured the heroes of the stunt world, the piece also served as a nice wink to this movie. A quick aside, the Oscar for Best Stunt Performance is well over due, the Academy has to introduce this award. 

Anyway, back to the movie. Given Leitch's history with action films, he was determined to make sure this movie equally served as a rom-com whilst still at heart still being an action movie. His previous projects have clearly had a flair for action but not characters. It was crucial therefore that you bought into Colt & Jody's relationship, which I did. Their love story provides the back bone to the on screen action. 

It may have been his zeitgeist breaking performance as Ken in last years uber smash Barbie,(aided by that iconic live performance of "I'm Just Ken" at the Oscars) but it's in this film that shows Gosling on his best form yet. His Seavers is ruggedly handsome whilst at the same time being charming, loveable and damn right funny. He is perfectly cast. I much preferred Gosling in this role to that of Ken. 

Emily Blunt's Jody is a fantastic foil to Seavers, she is clearly having a blast and is very funny and not only gets to shout "action!" as the fictional director but also gets in on the action as well. 

Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Tom Ryder Metalstorm's main star must have been very full at the end of the shoot, as he chewed that much scenery as the A-hole A-Lister, he clearly had a blast. He was suitably narcissistic, obnoxious and above all a coward. 

Winston Duke, best known as M'Baku in the Black Panther movies plays Dan Tucker, a stunt co-ordinator who helps Seavers track down Ryder. Duke is effortlessly watchable, meaning that Tucker is more than just a tack-on character. 

I especially loved the dog Jean Claude, (An Australian breed called a Kelpie) who was a great companion for Seavers. The dog herself (2 female dogs played the role) was an homage to Eva Mende's (Gosling's partner) late dog Hugo, a Belgian Malinois who only responded to commands en français. 

Ted Lasso's Hannah Waddingham plays Gail, Metalstorm's bullish producer. Again very much like Duke, Waddingham (Sporting killer dark curls and 80's style glasses) infuses her own natural humour into the role making Gail a funny character who nicely shows the stress producers are under. 

Sound and Spectacle

The sound design is superb which really goes a long way to support the action. As for spectacle, there is a lot of it but it feels grounded and comes about naturally. It's not a case of the movie just mindlessly hopping from set piece to set piece. Metalstorm as well (the movie within the movie) is whilst of course a cheesy send up of a Hollywood action blockbuster is no less an impressive sight, together with a very familiar music motif from a recent spice based movie. 

On screen Action

Director David Leitch himself started as a stunt double and has progressively worked his way up to director. His love of the stunt industry and it's countless professionals is clearly seen on screen, particularly where the on-set stuntmen and women come together to take out the henchmen. The stunts in this movie feel like they have been crafted with love, as a result they feel real, Leitch was adamant that he wanted to use as little CGI as possible.

The action set pieces feel grounded and organic and are genuinely exciting. The chase through Sydney involving a skip and Seavers updated but no less iconic GMC pick-up truck (a nod to the 80's TV show) being a particular highlight. 

Music and Score

Dominic Lewis who collaborated with Leitch on the director's last feature, Bullet Train again delivers the goods for the director. I really liked the score of this movie. There were some great needle drops as well to heighten the excitement of the on screen action. 

As for the iconic "The Unknown Stuntman" song, fear not, be sure to stay for the end credits as you get a slightly updated but faithful cover accompanied by a reel of the "Real" stuntmen of The Fall Guy.

Finally, stay in your seat for a nostalgic mid credit scene!

The Fall Guy is a BLAST! In more ways than one, fantastic chemistry between Gosling & Blunt, great support cast, heart pounding action set pieces, a sweet romance and a great script. This is an old school summer action comedy. Grab the biggest box of popcorn you can, sit back and relax - the summer season is FINALLY here!

Verdict  - MATCHED EXPECTATIONS