by Shane Conto, Staff Writer
Anyone else out there afraid of heights? They are terrifying to me. When I used to go to the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, I would watch films on a big domed IMAX screen. They used to show an ad before each film showing a bird’s eye view of the city. I would FREAK OUT. Films like Free Solo made me so afraid that I couldn’t even bring myself to see them. But when I saw the trailer for Fall… I got quite nervous. That teaser was simply a camera rising from the ground all the way to the top of a 2,000-foot-tall radio tower. It certainly got my attention.
But does co-writer and director Scott Mann help Fall evolve past just a high concept idea? Before we get to our big climb, there is another climb that is quite tragic. Fall basically rips off the beginning of Cliffhanger (which is also parodied in Ace Ventura When Nature Calls). Our protagonist, Becky (Grace Fulton), loses her husband (played by the always charismatic Mason Gooding) as he falls to his death. This gives the audience a way to connect with Becky when she makes this new climb one year later with her now estranged friend, Hunter (Virginia Gardner).
Is this enough to make the audience care? There are some solid set-ups for emotional stakes, as this climb becomes about salvaging a friendship and overcoming grief. Becky’s father (an always gruff and charismatic Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is also estranged, and their relationship is on the rocks. Becky’s grief has taken over her life, but the film has a clunky way of conveying that people need to move on. The dialogue is too blunt, and it makes the film feel too preachy. We do get plenty of time to see Becky and Hunter’s friendship come back together in a meaningful way, though. But the bigger issue is that their growth is unmined by a horribly timed and executed twist that comes off cheap and ineffective. This was so rough that it almost torpedoed the whole film.
Do the thrills at least deliver in this film? The effects are solid for a film that obviously does not have the world’s largest budget. There are a few too many moments that feel like cheap ways to continue the hardship of our protagonist. This is an almost two-hour film when it certainly does not have to be. But there are some good set-ups that deliver suspense and fear. There are vultures set up early on, and they become regular antagonists in the narrative. If you want some solid thrills and excitement at ridiculous heights, this one will carry that much for you.
Does Fulton deliver a strong enough central performance to carry this film to the finish line? This is a talented young actress, and you can see that from the start. Becky is put through the wringer in so many physical and emotional ways that it becomes a large order to film for an actor. But Fulton comes to play, and she plays hard. She displays plenty of emotion in her turn as Becky, making for the right protagonist to draw us in.
Does Fall deliver the right number of thrills? Even if the film is a bit bloated in runtime, and though some of the choices made in the script are suspect, they do not sink the film. There are enough crazy thrills and quality filmmaking to make this an interesting ride. There is also some solid character work that gives connection, allowing the audience to care enough. Solid work means a solid experience to feel in the cinema.
Score: 6/10
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