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Lead Critic for the site, as well as serving as an editor when needed.
The history of cinema and action go hand in hand. Stuntmen are the unsung heroes of cinema and often go unrecognized. The last several years have seen more recognition for the community, however. The Fall Guy is an ’80s television show about stuntmen who moonlight as bounty hunters. Hijinks ensue and throughout their adventures, the trio essentially does stunts as they catch criminals.
David Leitch and Drew Pearce’s film of the same name is based on this idea with Ryan Gosling in the same role made famous by Lee Majors on the television show. Gosling and Emily Blunt have near-electric chemistry. The action set pieces are impressive, and the comedic timing surprisingly works. However, the film’s script, helmed by Pearce, is a bit lackluster and falls flat. The film is only saved by smooth editing and great stunt work.
Minor spoilers to follow.
Action Homages
The television show featured some of the same stunts throughout every episode. Ultimately, The Fall Guy feels like director and producer David Leitch’s thank you to the stunt community. The film feels like it wants to exhibit a lot of action quickly—a huge, cool stunt, with some dialogue to finish the scene out. Yet, that doesn’t happen. The film’s biggest hiccup is its runtime; it would have been excellent at around ninety or one hundred minutes, but it clocks in over two hours. At times, The Fall Guy can run like two films trying to be one, which can be and has been done well. However, it’s choppy here.
Colt Seavers (Gosling) doubled Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) for years, but in the opening of The Fall Guy, he is injured while filming another take of a stunt and essentially retires from the film business. Eighteen months later, he is called back to a set to double Ryder again, albeit with producer Gail (Hannah Waddingham) really calling him back for other reasons. Jody Moreno (Blunt), Colt’s ex-girlfriend, is now making her directorial debut and Ryder is nowhere to be found. Waddingham’s character was awfully annoying, and it felt as though she was sometimes trying to overact against Blunt. Her character’s motivations were oddly questionable, and her presence could have served from less screen time.
Respect to Stunt Work
The film features some great stunt work. The Fall Guy‘s technical elements really hold it together when the film feels overrun. There are so many references to other stunt-heavy films like The Last of the Mohicans and the Fast & Furious franchise. The opening stunt, performed by Gosling, was an excellent way to start the film and almost prepare the audience for the type of exposition The Fall Guy features. The film also breaks a Guinness World Record for the most cannon rolls performed in a car: eight and a half. The record was previously held by Martin Campbell’s Casino Royale (2006) for seven. That stunt in particular is just epic to see on screen.
The cannon roll was performed by Logan Holladay, who actually pulls Gosling out of the car on screen after Holladay just did the stunt, an amusing anecdote. Gosling’s other three stunt doubles include Justin Eaton, Troy Brown, and Ben Jenkin. Each double had a certain skill set needed for each stunt in the film and each did spectacular jobs on screen.
The television series also featured a truck jump in several episodes over each season. With the film, Leitch took great care of even the minute details. In the show, Majors drove a lifted GMC pickup. Gosling eventually drives a similar, albeit newer, pickup. The truck jump in the film, which Gosling didn’t perform, was very quick and clean. It was great to see it done properly though. There is also a huge 150-foot fall at the end of the film, performed by Brown. When Colt makes the drop, it almost knocks out the audience too. The stunt work is just so careful and choreographed that it makes every stunt flow so smoothly. It’s nice to see the proper use of slow motion.
Everything Else
Colt and Jody are a fun couple and the leads have fantastic chemistry, but that’s about it. The film feels overrun at times and that’s mostly due to its runtime. The Fall Guy even embraces the meta of it all sometimes. That specific element is good, but sometimes it does feed into it too much. Gosling even has a line about third-act exposition taking up too much runtime, and that is weirdly true for the actual film as the audience sees. The third act could have been saved by eliminating a few plot points, especially throwing in a murder-suicide subplot.
The entire cast is having a lot of fun though. Dan Tucker (Winston Duke) and Colt are one of the film’s other saving graces. Their friendship on screen is great, with some of their history being revealed through dialogue. Teresa Palmer and Stephanie Hsu make solid co-stars, but both felt like they could have benefited from more screen time. Stars of the television show, Lee Majors and Heather Thomas have cameos at the end of the film, which was a nice cherry on top. Jason Momoa replaces Tom Ryder in the film Jody and Colt filmed, with Momoa digitally replacing Ryder in post.
Final Thoughts on The Fall Guy
The Fall Guy is a solid love letter to the stunt community, with the potential to create more conversations around stunt recognition. Without a doubt, the best part of this film is its stunt work and action. The exposition is great when there isn’t too much of it. The film does a stellar job of entertaining the audience. There are also references to some of the biggest Hollywood action franchises and films.
The opening montage is some of the biggest stunts ever performed, which is a great reminder about key pieces and sequences of Hollywood. While the stunt work and action are present and executed well, that’s about the biggest draw of the film. The biggest hiccup of the film is its script and writing choices, like the need to constantly have Gail on screen and reduce even Tom Ryder’s presence. It can come off as distracting more than anything.
3/5 stars
David Leitch’s The Fall Guy is now playing in theatres everywhere!
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Lead Critic for the site, as well as serving as an editor when needed.
