The Fall Guy

Even a great cast can’t save this tedious film.

Let me begin by suggesting that if you want to see Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt in great movies, then dodge this cinematic mess and see him in Barbie (2023) and La La Land (2016) and her in A Quiet Place (2018) and Oppenheimer (2023). The Fall Guy would more appropriately be played in hell as part of a condemned soul’s eternal punishment.

Mr. Gosling plays Colt Seavers, a Hollywood stunt man forced to leave the business after a serious back injury. He is called back into action a year later in an Australian film being directed by Ms. Blunt, his former love interest.

Unfortunately, the star of the film (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) has disappeared. Gosling finds himself trapped in a murder mystery where he previously served as a stunt man in Taylor-Johnson’s earlier pictures.

However, what dominates the weak plot is the sad reality that you are forced to watch Gosling perform numerous stunts that would have killed a performer working in real life and not fantasy land. He recovers instantly from serious injuries as he drops from planes and high buildings, not to mention being set on fire.

Ms. Blunt’s principal role is to do little more than direct a flawed film in this flawed movie as she rekindles her love for Gosling. It is hard to pay attention to her when nearly every scene involves another stunt.

Let me close by saying that this movie lasts 2 hours, 5 minutes. I bolted the theatre before the credits started to appear on screen, so please keep that in mind.