Fall Guy, The

Stars: Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, Hannah Waddingham, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Winston Duke, Stephanie Hau, Teresa Palmer

Director: David Leitch

Following on from his success in Barbie, Gosling is cast here as the character created by Lee Majors in the hit TV series of the same name in the 1980s. Director Leitch has created a new plotline for the character, but since I couldn't follow much of what there was, you should perhaps just concentrate on the spectacular action, fights, stunts and the likeable chemistry between the stars.

Retaining the character name from the TV show, Gosling is Colt Seavers, the best stuntman in the business, and action double for megastar Tom Ryder (Taylor-Johnson) - until, that is, until Colt breaks his back in a precipitous fall that goes wrong. After months in hospital, he goes into seclusion and tries to forget his romance with assistant director Jodie Moreno (Blunt, pretty adorable here, especially when singing karaoke).

Eighteen months pass and, with a rigorous workout program, Colt is almost back to full health, when he receives a call from producer Gail Meyer (Waddington). Jodie is directing her first film, a fantasy/sci-fi epic, and has apparently requested Colt to do the stunts for Ryder, the film's star.

When Colt arrives, he finds Jodie, who treats him coolly, has done no such thing, and that he seems to be the fall guy in some kind of frame-up scheme. Before long, big goons with big guns are firing at him from all angles...

That's the bare bones of it, and there sure ain't much meat on them thar bones, undercutting Gosling and Blunt's scenes outside of the action zone. Keep your eyes peeled at the end for appearances by Lee Majors, Heather Thomas (the TV series' stars) and Jason Momoa.

David Quinlan

USA/Australia/UK/Canada 2024. UK Distributor: Universal. Colour by Company 3.
126 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 12A.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 0, Violence/Horror 1, Drugs 0, Swearing 1.

Review date: 05 May 2024