The Fall Guy starts off the summer box office with a bang, a smart action-comedy that’s just what the audience wants. Ryan Gosling is effortlessly charming as always, this time donning his romantic hero cape while trying to win Emily Blunt’s heart in an aw-shucks sweet but rugged sort of way. Theirs is the kind of superstar lead chemistry that studio suits dream about. It’s also director David Leitch’s best film yet; he deserves props for delivering such a great one. “The unknown stuntman that makes Eastwood look so fine” — those memorable lyrics from the classic TV show get a blockbuster adaptation here, despite an overly meta plot and enough GMC truck product placement to stamp your forehead.
Gosling plays Colt Seaver, who ambles through a movie set and narrates his job description as a Hollywood stuntman. His career has been spent being the action double for Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), a laughably arrogant and insulting A-lister who’s coddled like a spoiled toddler by mega-producer Gail Meyer (Hannah Waddingham). All Tom cares about is what Tom wants; it’s Tom’s world and everyone else plays second fiddle. And all Colt cares about is spending time with Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt), a camera operator who he plans to sip spicy margaritas on a beach with once this film wraps.
But two years later Colt finds himself parking cars as valet at a Mexican restaurant when he gets a call from frantic Gail on set in Sydney, Australia. About to hang up, she tells him that Jody is directing her first film down there — Metal Storm, a sci-fi action romance — but she lies to get Colt on the plane because that isn’t her problem: Tom Ryder has been missing for days and she thinks he might be in serious trouble, now Gail can’t keep lying to Jody and the film’s financiers about where he is, Colt needs to find Tom before it ruins Jody’s big chance — her reaction to him appearing out of nowhere does not go nearly as planned.
Screenwriter Drew Pearce (Iron Man 3, Hotel Artemis) mirrors the romance in Metal Storm with the rekindled relationship between Colt and Jody. They were never great communicators as a couple, but The Fall Guy allows them both to address issues that have been impeding their smoldering love and attraction. These scenes are hilarious — they take place on a packed movie set where every person working around them knows exactly what’s happening. And you get invested because Gosling and Blunt have that shared charisma – who doesn’t want a happy ending? Although riding off into the sunset together might not make for compelling cinema. No, this is literally dynamite stuff; their struggle to find artistic and personal happiness together will blow your mind.
David Leitch (Deadpool 2, Bullet Train) brilliantly showcases his talent as one of Hollywood’s preeminent action directors who just so happens to be an ex-stuntman himself. The Fall Guy features some of the most jaw-dropping fight scenes, vehicle chases and death-defying plunges ever put on screen. But what I really appreciate about Leitch here is that he doesn’t lean too much on gunplay — Colt isn’t a trained killer, he’s just a guy who knows how to throw himself on top of a speeding car without shattering every bone in his body because it’s his job. But no matter how many times we see someone walk away from an explosion unscathed there will always be something inherently thrilling about witnessing things go boom when you know all the planning and equipment that went into making sure everything goes safely kaboom within inches of everyone involved in this particular case…
The missing person at the story’s center isn’t a case for Sherlock Holmes. You can pretty much figure out which way the wind is blowing early on. In a long second act, Leitch eases off the gas to deliver some necessary exposition; the pacing slows here, but not so much that it derails the fun. The movie needs to take a breather and let its talented cast do their thing. Leitch isn’t going for nonstop adrenaline; in fact, some of the best moments are when characters are just joking around with each other. Colt’s buddy scenes with his old pal Dan Tucker (Winston Duke) provide levity and extra muscle when things get hairy. There’s no “I” in team — stunts are a group effort all around.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson doesn’t quite steal the film, but he gets close in his handful of scenes as a slimy narcissist. He embodies this stereotype of an actor who thinks he’s better than everyone else; people scurry around him like sycophantic mice doing his absurd bidding. Leitch and Pearce score some big laughs knocking cringe-worthy designer ads stars crank out for easy money. The movie satirizes how far famous people will go to appear genuine and be celebrated for authenticity. Ryder’s constant “I do all my own stunts” lying has to be a funny dig at Tom Cruise. This backfires somewhat, given that Leitch puts his production company logo all over key set pieces — nobody said subtlety was an action-film director’s strong suit. But then again, what about “Bullet Train” screams “subtle”?
There also are enough Easter eggs here to keep fans of that TV show happy; “The Fall Guy” takes the original premise in a different direction but always nods back to its source material. The movie lays track for sequels galore — stick around through those credits for a few more fun surprises.
