A review of The Fall Guy
The Fall Guy is loosely based on the 1980s show of the same name starring Lee Majors as Colt Seavers, a stuntman who uses his know-how of practical effects and stunts as a bounty hunter to make some extra cash. By loosely, we mean that aside from the title, the name of the lead, and the fact that he does stunts, there’s no relation.
Ryan Gosling’s Colt Seavers is your stuntman next door. He’s affable, charming, and very good at what he does, which is being the main stunt double for action superstar Tom Ryder (Aarontaylor-johnson). His main squeeze, Jody, is played by Emily Blunt, a camera operator and aspiring director. The two lovebirds have a whirlwind romance until an accident on the set of one of Ryder’s movies leaves Colt with a severe back injury and a lot of self-pity.
Sometime later, Colt’s injury healed pretty well, but his relationship with Jody did not go so well. The two have moved on, him parking cars and Jody with her shot at the director’s chair, helming a big-budget, career-making film.
Colt’s world is turned upside down again when movie producer Gail (Hanna Waddingham) drags Him back into the stunt business on Jody’s film and asks him to please help find Ryder, who has gone missing. With the love of his life’s film and future career in jeopardy, Colt springs into action.
The insanity that ensues is a perfect mix of action and comedy laced with romance throughout. Gosling is perfect as the everyman, normal guy type of lead, and he brings that vibe and endearing quality to Colt as he goes through one hardship after another.
What's refreshing is that neither Colt nor Jody are in any way above the rest of us. He's not the dashing superspy, and she's not a hot supermodel. They are real people going through real issues in a hilariously over-thetop way, and it works. The romance angle works, the comedy works, and the action and stunts work really well, too.
A movie about a stuntman is nothing without the stunts, and The Fall Guy is a veritable textbook on the different types of classic stunts from long fight scenes, falls, jumping cars, and even jumping boats.
The script by Drew Pearce is both funny and smart. He knows his audience, with callbacks to famous pop culture landmarks like Miami Vice and Lord of the Rings. He even mentioned San Diego Comccon's Hall H, where every major announcement or sneak preview in the past decade has occurred. (As they repeatedly say in the film, it's a big thing.)
Stunt performers are among the many who contribute to the magic of movie-making, but if they do their jobs right, no one will even know they were there. Except for Tom Cruise, every actor or actress has a stunt double to take the hits and the falls when required. Some, like Chad Stahelski (The John Wick franchise), move on to directing or acting like Shang Chi’s Simu Liu. Most, however, hone their craft in obscurity.
David Leitch, himself a stunt performer, directs the film with a love and sense of humor about his trade that is palpable in every scene. This time around, the unknown stuntman is front and center.
Coming to cinemas on May 1, The Fall Guy salutes the men and women who put themselves at risk to get the perfect action shot. It is good, clean, fun, with many stunts and a lot of heart.