'The Fall Guy' Is A Lovely Blockbuster About Making Blockbusters
The summer movie season is here. What better film to kick it off than The Fall Guy? TFG doesn't just glorify Hollywood; it authentically portrays it. It's a window into the world of movie-making, from the unique on-set lingo to the constant buzz of the radio. The film's realism is strikingly similar to my own experiences on movie sets, drawing me in and making me feel a part of the action. This authenticity is woven into the story of a Hollywood stuntman caught up in a mob scandal. However, the film doesn't dwell on the juicier parts of the plot. Instead, it's a compelling love story brought to life with flying colors.
The Fall Guy is about a man who's in love with a woman director on her first big break. Colt Seavers (Ryan Gosling) is an experienced stuntman where danger is his middle name. After having a short romance with a camera operator now turned director, Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt) The two have drifted apart but are flung back together when Colt is assigned to work on Jody's movie. Despite the opportunity, Colt almost doesn't take the job.
At the beginning of the film, we see Colt get into an accident where the harness to keep him from hitting the ground from several stories up fails to operate functionally. After the failed stunt, Colt suffers a back injury that takes him out of the film industry. Luckily, Colt doesn't stick with parking cars for long. When assigned to work on Jody's first big film, it turns out that Jody didn't hire Colt. So, who did? A manipulative executive producer is who. One where her insidious plans make more sense later in the film.
While we're going into the movie to see the action side of things, the movie is more about the love story. For the story to work, the film needs chemistry between its two leads. Thankfully, there's plenty of it between Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt. That's probably because they're two of Hollywood's most attractive stars working together. Looks alone can't make a film work. There needs to be wit and charm that its leads contain and both qualities they have. Aside from being two gorgeous people, the kindness that Gosling and Blunt projected on screen doesn't seem like the phony Hollywood type of politeness. The leads seem like genuinely polite people. It's not like that feeling you get when you're watching a love story between two actors who can't stand each other behind the scenes. Even more so, Ryan Gosling is an actor who's proven to have comedic chops.
With the right script, any actor can be funny. Luckily, Ryan Gosling has received many scripts that have made his comedic work stand out. From The Nice Guys to Barbie to this, Gosling has a chance to display his funny side and does so swimmingly. There's a timing to his jokes and earnesty in his quips where Gosling knows how to straddle the line between playing goofy and serious. Blunt plays the scenes a little more seriously as she isn't demanded to be as slapsticky as Gosling's character is. After all, he is a fall guy. So he's going to be hurt a lot for our sadistic enjoyment of watching someone in pain.
When the movie isn't romancing the audience's heart it's rewarding them with gratifying action. As the film dives deeper into its conspiracy plot, the action gets crazier. This film, as you can guess, is a love letter to stunt performers directed by a former stuntman. The Fall Guy director, David Leitch, has directed films like Deadpool 2 and Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw. So he knows how to do action. During the film's closing credits, we see the stunt performers behind the scenes of this film performing all of its car flips and boat jumps. The Fall Guy has a real heart to it that doesn't feel like typical Hollywood sentimentality. It's a film for people who work in film and love it. The movie doesn't focus on the grueling hours and toxicity that can run rampant on other sets. It's all made to make filmmaking look like fun which is fine for an action/romance centered on the movies.
The Fall Guy isn't a perfect comedy. Its plot revolving around a missing character can get convoluted. Even the film itself addresses it when Colt states that too much exposition can lose the audience. The movie also wraps up on one climax only to wind the audience up on another. The length could have been trimmed but it never drags itself too much. For a fun time at the movies during the summer, you can't go wrong with The Fall Guy. It's funny, charming, has some great action, and has two strong leads to boot. It's the perfect date movie. Furthermore, it's refreshing to see a film that doesn't lead to sequels or franchises. Just a simple single film that reinvigorates one's passion for making films.
