The Fall
My review of The Fall, as submitted to IMDb! woo!
I never would have heard of or noticed this film had I not been an enormous fan of Pushing Daisies and therefore Lee Pace - this is lucky, as in discovering this film I have found one of the most strikingly original movies I have ever seen.
The Fall is the story of a girl (Untaru) in hospital who visits an injured stuntman (Pace) on another ward. He tells her a story but gradually the story starts to become “real”. Hard to say much more without giving the plot away, but Tarsem as director ensures a smooth yet also surreal transition between the hospital and the stuntman’s story throughout the film. Visually, it is an absolute masterpiece. Filmed in 24 countries, some of the scenery does literally take your breath away, but it is essential to the tale the stuntman spins.
All the actors make the film completely realistic. Catinca Untaru, playing the girl at the hospital, is so perfect and childlike that any other child actor would seem faker than fake. Her relationship with Lee Pace’s stuntman is believable from start to finish, and they carry the film brilliantly.
For me it is a crime that this film did not receive wider advertising and distribution, particularly in the UK, where although I was following reviews at the time, my attention was never drawn to this film. If you liked Pan’s Labyrinth I would definitely recommend this - it is not as dark, but equally compelling…Pan’s Labyrinth is the only film remotely similar that I can think of. To conclude, The Fall is enigmatic, stunning and utterly unique, so far that for movie lovers, it should be unmissable. I cannot recommend it too highly!
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Just to add, I'm not sure whether I meant to say enigmatic or actually ambiguous, which the ending most certainly is.
I never would have heard of or noticed this film had I not been an enormous fan of Pushing Daisies and therefore Lee Pace - this is lucky, as in discovering this film I have found one of the most strikingly original movies I have ever seen.
The Fall is the story of a girl (Untaru) in hospital who visits an injured stuntman (Pace) on another ward. He tells her a story but gradually the story starts to become “real”. Hard to say much more without giving the plot away, but Tarsem as director ensures a smooth yet also surreal transition between the hospital and the stuntman’s story throughout the film. Visually, it is an absolute masterpiece. Filmed in 24 countries, some of the scenery does literally take your breath away, but it is essential to the tale the stuntman spins.
All the actors make the film completely realistic. Catinca Untaru, playing the girl at the hospital, is so perfect and childlike that any other child actor would seem faker than fake. Her relationship with Lee Pace’s stuntman is believable from start to finish, and they carry the film brilliantly.
For me it is a crime that this film did not receive wider advertising and distribution, particularly in the UK, where although I was following reviews at the time, my attention was never drawn to this film. If you liked Pan’s Labyrinth I would definitely recommend this - it is not as dark, but equally compelling…Pan’s Labyrinth is the only film remotely similar that I can think of. To conclude, The Fall is enigmatic, stunning and utterly unique, so far that for movie lovers, it should be unmissable. I cannot recommend it too highly!
___________
Just to add, I'm not sure whether I meant to say enigmatic or actually ambiguous, which the ending most certainly is.