Review: 'The Fall Guy' is a love letter to everything that makes movies magic
Stunt crews have been making lazy actors look invincible since the birth of cinema. What a kick to see these pros take the spotlight in "The Fall Guy," now in theaters starring a peak-form Ryan Gosling, who uses his role as one such daredevil to blow kisses to Hollywood's unsung heroes, who do the work for real, minus the deep fake of digital.
The academy has been dawdling forever about awarding an Oscar for stunt professionals. "The Fall Guy" should change that in a big fat hurry after voters catch this insanely entertaining action comedy that shows the pleasure and pride inherent in making it all look easy.
Gosling knocks it out of the park as Colt Seavers, a stunt master who quits the business after a 12-story fall nearly kills him. What brings him back after 18 months of rehab is loyalty to his ex, Jody Moreno (a gangbusters Emily Blunt), a camera operator making her directing debut with a sci-fi epic in Australia and hating on Colt for ghosting her after his accident.
It's Jody's producer Gail Meyer, played by "Ted Lasso" Emmy fireball Hannah Waddingham, who calls in Colt. Not just to right the course of true love, but to get a virtuoso on Jody's team. Disaster strikes when leading man Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) goes MIA. Suspects include Ryder's girlfriend (Teresa Palmer) and personal assistant (Stephanie Hsu).
Screenwriter Drew Pearce cobbles together a plot that involves Colt and his bestie, movie-quoting stunt coordinator Dan Tucker (a dynamite Winston Duke), getting knocked around as they investigate a conspiracy that explains what happed to the prickly AWOL movie star, hilariously spoofed by Taylor-Johnson, even if the danger might get Colt killed for real.
But come on! Stunts are the main attraction, as characters do cannon rolls, burst into flames, leap off speeding cars and boats, and play fight club in a spinning dumpster. And "John Wick" director David Leitch, a stunt double for the likes of Brad Pitt and Matt Damon, knows the truth in the old slogan that action is character. You can feel his love for stunts in every frame.
Loosely derived from the 1980's TV series starring Lee Majors, "The Fall Guy" raises the ante on what it takes to do the impossible. The wow factor is off the charts, as are the sparks ping-ponging between Gosling and Blunt, who are romcom hotties to die for. Ken from "Barbie" and the feisty missus from "Oppenheimer" do themselves proud as a screwball dream team.
Gosling had five stunt doubles in the film, but does some of the work himself. At the film's premiere, the star waxed poetic about the stunt community.
"They are the hardest-working people in show business," he said. "They risk more than anyone."
He was only half joking when he added, "This movie is just a giant campaign to get stunts an Oscar."
So get busy, academy. It's high time these gutsy warriors earned some glory. As for audiences, "The Fall Guy" is a love letter to everything that makes movies magic. It's also everything you want in bust-out summer fun. You'll leave the theater with a smile on your face that won't quit. What are you waiting for? This one's a keeper.
