THE FALL
© Sony Pictures
Mania Grade: C-
Rated: R
Starring: Catinca Untaru, Justine Waddell, Lee Pace, Kim Uylenbroek, Aiden Lithgow, Daniel Caltagirone
Written By: Dan Gilroy, Nico Soultanakis, Tarsem Singh (screenplay), Valeri Petrov (original screenplay from 1981)
Directed By: Tarsem Singh
Distributor: Sony Pictures
Original Year of release: 2006 (theatrical) 2008 (DVD)
Extras: Commentary, Deleted Scenes, 2 behind the Scenes Featurettes
Buy it now!
Rated: R
Starring: Catinca Untaru, Justine Waddell, Lee Pace, Kim Uylenbroek, Aiden Lithgow, Daniel Caltagirone
Written By: Dan Gilroy, Nico Soultanakis, Tarsem Singh (screenplay), Valeri Petrov (original screenplay from 1981)
Directed By: Tarsem Singh
Distributor: Sony Pictures
Original Year of release: 2006 (theatrical) 2008 (DVD)
Extras: Commentary, Deleted Scenes, 2 behind the Scenes Featurettes
Buy it now!
DVD Review: THE FALL
By: Robert T. TrateReview Date: Wednesday, September 17, 2008
A stuntman named Roy (Lee Pace) ends up in the hospital after an action sequence goes horribly wrong. Bedridden, Roy meets a little girl named Alexandria (Catinca Untaru), who is also a patient at the hospital. Roy entertains Alexandria with a story about a group of bandits and their quest for revenge against the evil Governor Odious (Daniel Caltagirone). In a nod to the Wizard of Oz, Alexandria imagines that the people she sees at the hospital are Roy’s heroic bandits.
The Fall is as visually amazing as director Tarsem Singh’s other better known work, The Cell (2000). Unfortunately, like The Cell, The Fall’s story falls flat. Tarsem Singh starts off on the right foot by making the story a fairy tale told to a child. He creates an atmosphere where anything is possible. One cannot help but be reminded of Rob Reiner’s The Princess Bride (1987) while watching The Fall. Singh’s film, though visually superior, lacks everything that made The Princess Bride endearing. Relatable characters, a strong love story, clever humor and that perfect blend of camp made Reiner’s film a story that all audiences could identify with. Singh’s film starts off with one character playing the lead then changing due to the whim of a child, a device used to enable Roy to assume the mantle of hero in his own story. This change was not the first or the last as the story progressed. Without a definitive and solid story it quickly becomes a visual spectacle and little else.
A major distraction is Catinca Untaru’s portrayal of Alexandria. Her dialogue is often inaudible. This is not a sound issue; the child simply cannot speak English well enough to be understood. Alexandria is our window to both stories. Her perception and interaction is what will make or break most of the film. Perhaps some of us could do without Fred Savage and Peter Falk narrating The Princess Bride but without them how could we ever surrender ourselves to its charm? Catinca Untaru isn’t the downfall of the movie but her performance certainly doesn’t help it.
The film is prolonged at the end by giving the audience numerous happy endings after the “story” of the bandits is completed. These events are out of place due to where the film was spiraling to. This marks the final nail in the coffin for the The Fall and fails to salvage any of its credibility as a story about revenge, redemption and forgiveness.
Terry Gilliam’s The Adventures of Baron Munchausen is, in many ways, what this film is trying to emulate. It is a collection of fantasy genre stereotypes, the Indian, the slave, the mystic and the bandit all on a quest to bring down evil and win the girl wrapped in a child’s imagination. The Fall, more or less, is closer to the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (the movie), poorly executed and no fun at all. The film is a visual masterpiece in art direction and cinematography the likes of which haven’t been seen in a long while. Even with all the eye candy the sour story makes The Fall worth skipping.
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We watched it and were left entirely confused. Not only about the message and story. But, why in the hell did it take 4 years to make this movie. There was nothing special about it compared to movies made in a normal amount of time. This bombed at the box office and I'm curious how much money was lost on this film.