The Fall Guy

A love letter to the stunt profession, written in genuine script and sealed in an envelope adorned with cute stickers of Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, and a dog that bites on command. It's a pity that the romance, humor, and attempt to build a meaningful story were nothing more than kitschy postcards that deserved to be shredded. The soundtrack, featuring Kiss and The Darkness, works well. The final '80s hellscape about the strength of the stunt community, with its unwelcome excessiveness, somewhat drags through David Leitch's love letter. Guy Gosling's performance felt a bit out of place; perhaps an unknown stunt performer could have taken the role, maintaining authenticity and saving 12 million dollars plus a little extra for the stunt doubles. (06/14/2024)

If you're going to make an unpretentious action comedy, this is how you do it. Putting aside the most questionable thing – the crime plot at the heart of the film is very simple and silly, but it's not really the point, the whole thing is pulled along by both the action-packed stunt attractions, but mostly by the charisma of the two leads. Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt work great together, they have visible chemistry and their verbal banter at times almost makes you think of classic screwball romantic comedies. It's actually a nice love letter from Drew Pearce and David Leitch to all the stuntmen, the "invisible" crew members and filmmaking in general, and the idyllic romanticization of the whole creative process without a single hint of cynicism works very well for the audience. (04/26/2024)

If I had to describe this film in one word, it's energetic. The Fall Guy is a perfect blend of positive feel good vibes, precisely delivered interactions between the two leads and action wrapped in a refreshing theme from the world of filmmaking and stuntmen. It may have "only" some basic story, "only" average action, and actually the humor isn't as sharp as we've come to expect from David Leitch's after Bullet Train, but this whole ordinary package is just so lightheartedly delivered and accentuated by the acting of the sweet Emily Blunt and the charismatic Ryan Gosling that it would be a sin not to throw in that extra 4th star. Sure, the action could have been more intense and imaginative, and especially the humour could have been sharper and a bit more bonkers in that regard, but the film as a whole is still pretty satisfying fun with pretty, colourful and expensive visuals. (05/01/2024)

Stuntman Ryan Gosling must find a lost movie star in order to save the film of his beloved Emily Blunt. And for her, he'll go through hell. David Leitch delivers an entertaining tribute to the stunt craft and all those who practice it. He combines great action with surprisingly even better romance, a nice bit of wit and humor, and the obvious joy of goofing around on set with the friends he's spent his entire career with. And it's great to watch. (04/30/2024)

Ryan Gosling is the action hero that modern masculinity needs, and this film is a magnificent culmination of the roles that he has played so far and his image. Instead of bombastic macho tough guys, here we have a guy who can handle wild physical challenges, but he also knows how to come to grips with his emotions (even if it’s only by listening to plaintive songs in his car) and can be sensitive, supportive and friendly towards others while taking himself with a sense of detached humour. And on top of that, he’s also both hot and adorable. In addition, The Fall Guy offers up a bombastic tribute to stunt work that comprises a grand culmination of the work done by the stunt and choreography group 87eleven, or rather its production division, 87North. Besides the trademark style of fight choreography, the filmmakers fortunately focused primarily on the logistically more challenging aspects of stunt work with automobiles, explosions and collisions, and every possible kind of fall, which they execute not only for the camera, but also for the narrative. All of this is done mainly with the aim of lobbying for the rectification of the nonsensical neglect of stuntpeople at the hands of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. (However, it could possibly be argued that the Academy doesn’t overlook stuntpeople because it would want to somehow draw attention away from the behind-the-scenes magic of film, but solely because most members of the Academy don’t understand the industry and the results of voting would correspond to that, as is the case with the animation category.) In light of all of that, The Fall Guy also works as a refreshingly exaggerated romantic comedy that takes the female point of view rather than the usual male perspective. Though it’s true that the film is somewhat handicapped by the uneven screenplay and exceedingly obvious utilitarianism of the individual peripeteias, which serve as an excuse for staging particular bits of choreography, this is offset by the fact that the filmmakers know how to shoot everything with maximum effectiveness and entertainment value, which is not true of the film’s spiritual ancestor, Hooper (1976), by the first stuntman-turned-director, Hal Needham. (05/03/2024)