Saturday, May 4, 2024

Review of THE FALL GUY: Fractured and Framed

May 3, 2024


Colt Seavers (Ryan Gosling) was the stunt double for big action star Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). One day, a stunt where Colt was supposed to fall backwards from a tall height did not go as planned, Colt broke his back.  While he recovered from his injury, Colt disappeared from the filmmaking scene totally, not even say goodbye to his girlfriend Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt), who worked behind the camera on several films he worked in. 

Eighteen months later, Colt found work as a valet for a Mexican restaurant. Producer Gail Meyer (Hannah Waddingham) suddenly called telling him to fly over to Sydney for her latest film project with Tom Ryder.  When Colt declined, Gail revealed that she had offered this new sci-fi epic "Metalstorm" to Jody Moreno to be her directorial debut. With that last detail in mind, Colt quit his menial job and was flying over to Australia in no time. 

Director David Leitch had himself been a stuntman, so this project that celebrated the contribution of stunt workers in films was very close to his heart. He had been a stunt double for stars like Brad Pitt, so he knew the mindset of Colt Seavers better than anyone. From "John Wick" (2014) to "Bullet Train" (2022), stunt work had always been a major aspect of Letich films. In "Fall Guy," the practical stunt work kicked into even higher gear.

Fresh from his Oscar nomination for "Barbie" (2023) and his exhilarating live performance of his song "I'm Just Ken" at the Oscar show, Ryan Gosling continues to ride this crest in his showbiz career with his magnetic portrayal of Colt Seaver in this film. He went all-in in the film's over-the-top action scenes with all the vehicular jumping and brutal fighting. His wry sense of comedy and romantic leading man charisma also served him good stead. 

Emily Blunt is always a reliable actress, and she made sure Jody Moreno also made her action-star presence here, even giving us her karaoke rendition of "Against All Odds."  The musical soundtrack with songs from Kiss to Taylor Swift was exciting and nostalgic, with recognizable soundbites from "Miami Vice" and "The Six Million Dollar Man." The surprise cameos that came at the end upped the good vibes even more. 8/10. 

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