mancusoMINI: The Fall Guy
mancusoMINI: The Fall Guy
David Leitch's action comedy is thoroughly entertaining on all fronts
mancusoMINI is a series of short-form reviews for new films that I saw but that are beyond my primary review slate (or I just didn’t have enough time to write a full review).
The Fall Guy’s lower-than-expected opening is both surprising and disappointing; while nothing revelatory, David Leitch’s action comedy is solidly entertaining on almost every level. Being a former stuntman himself, Leitch crafts an unabashed love letter to the profession that begs, both implicitly and explicitly, for broader recognition of stunt work, especially at the Academy Awards. This plea is not merely intellectual, as Leitch and his team put their money where their mouths are and craft some truly wonderful action set pieces (which a montage during the credits reveals to be mostly practical). But just as enjoyable are the performances, delightfully campy and sardonic. The highlight among the ensemble cast is the remarkable chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt that would surely make John Krasinski turn away in shame. Their romance feels organic and we root for their cathartic reunion by the film’s end (because, come on, don’t expect this film to be a heartbreaker). Gosling’s Colt, a retired stuntman pulled back into the world with more dangers than before, has a simple yet effective arc that, at the very least, gives us something to thematically sink our teeth into as some of the goofier sequences wash over us. Very thinly layered underneath the surface are ideas surrounding power in an industry that rewards and protects profitable, if awful, people. But these ideas are definitely secondary to an experience that is, at the end of the day, thoroughly entertaining - you can just feel how much fun the cast and crew had with this material. Its narrative may devolve into an over-complicated climax, but the film is loads of fun and the perfect starter to the summer movie season (despite its initially disappointing box office returns).
