150 Word Review: 'The Fall Guy' (2024)
A hunk of burning love
Ryan Gosling has been a dreamboat, an anti-hero, a living doll, and now he’s achieved his final form: a bona fide movie star.
He costars with another movie star, Emily Blunt, as a pair of bantering, bickering lovebirds in the romantic action comedy The Fall Guy, a big-budget salute to unsung Hollywood stuntmen that is overlong but endearing nonetheless, specifically because of the leads.
David Leitch, director of bloody bang-bangers like Atomic Blonde and Bullet Train, recklessly steers the silly backstage story, jumping from longing glances between Gosling and Blunt to car crashes and explosions. The jokes don't always land, but plenty of punches do. There is mayhem galore! The movie is like a dopey big brother who buys beer and makes dated cultural references.
There are other actors in the cast—Hannah Waddingham, and Winston Duks smile and charm—but this is all about Gosling and Blunt flirting amongst the flames.
Grief, friendship, Jazz Hands. My debut memoir, Theatre Kids, comes out June 18th.
New 150 Word Review: ‘Beau Travail’ (1999)
CORRECTION: a valued subscriber who shall remain nameless pointed out to me via text that David Leitch did not direct John Wick -- he co-directed it but was not credited -- so I made a few wholly tweaks to correct that error. I apologize. Thank you for your continued support.