Fall, a thriller focused on two climbers atop a tower 2,000 feet in the air arrives on Blu-ray this week and will have you clinging to your couch…when you aren’t bored.
The Movie
Fall (Blu-Ray)
Directed By: Scott Mann
Written By: Scott Mann, Jonathan Frank
Starring: Grace Caroline Currey, Virginia Gardner, Mason Gooding, Jeffrey Dean Morgan
Release Date: October 18, 2022
Purchase [Affiliate Link]: https://amzn.to/3Sb0mlB
Like all too many movies as of late, I missed out on Fall when it hit theaters just the other month. These type of thrillers are “my jam.” There’s something about seeing a smaller cast (or individual), faced with impossible odds that makes for some compelling fun. The Shallows was an impressive example of how great these can be (with a bit of creature feature thown in as well), and Fall does its best to follow that route. It doesn’t come close, but it certainly tries to capture that vibe!
Fall puts the focus on Becky, a young professional climber who, following the tragic death of her husband (during a dangerous climb), is struggling to find purpose. Coming up on the first anniversary of his death, Becky’s best friend Hunter, a social media influencer focused on dangerous climbs, comes back to town.
Hunter knows Becky hasn’t climbed in the year since the accident, and believes she has the perfect way to get Becky past her fear and find a new lease on life. By climbing an abandoned TV tower that extends around 2,000 feet into the air. It’s massive and has been out of use for a several years. It’s the perfect challenge for Hunter and her followers, while also giving Becky an opportunity to get “back in the saddle” so to speak.
After a lot of convincing, Becky agrees to undertake the adventure. As the two make their climb up the gigantic tower (of course placed practically in the middle of nowhere), and eventually reach the top, Becky discovers a rekindling of the passion she once had.
It’s the trip back down that becomes a problem. As the pair have completed their climb, and taken plenty of daring footage for online posting, they begin to descend. In doing so, however, they discover the aging tower is far more decrepit than imagined as the entire ladder breaks off.
Stranded 2,000 feet up, with no cell signal, a rope that’s not nearly long enough, and on a platform barely wide enough for them both to sit on, Becky and Hunter will have to use their skills to try and find a way to escape.
It’s a pretty solid premise for a thriller like this. Coming in at just an hour and a half long, it manages to move at a fairly quick pace too. The problem, however, is it just…well, the movie just isn’t that great.
I’m trying not to be too harsh, because some of the scenes are ridiculously intense. The filmmakers did a great job of providing the sense of tension and fear throughout various sequences to the point I found myself, literally, on the edge of my seat. So it’s a bummer the story surrounding it just couldn’t bring it all together.
Laced throughout the central story of trying to survive are themes about grieving, moving on, and a truly wild subplot about betrayal and cheating. All of which sounds decent enough on paper, but in execution feels only like a thinly veiled attempt to add depth to a fairly straightforward plot. The sad result is that anything not directly dealing with the high-tension ‘action’ moments are pretty mundane/boring.
Throw in a pretty big curveball near the finale (which I actually thought was neat, but can see a lot of people not digging it), and the whole film comes off as an odd bundle of decisions.
Sight and Sound
Much like another thriller I recently reviewed that was only “okay,” Fall is only coming to Blu-ray and skipping a 4K release for now. Even so, the transfer quality is solid and the picture looks fantastic. The image is consistently sharp, highlighting the terrifying heights, while keeping the blacks deep enough to ensure a solid image even during the night time shots.
The sound quality is just as solid, bringing the surround sound effect that easily immerses you into the scenes playing out. Nothing specifically stands out here, as there aren’t a bunch of big action sequences with things happening all around you, but neither were there any noticeable problems.
The Special FeaturesÂ
Fall comes with a DVD copy of the film, and digital copy insert card, and these bonus features on the disc:
Audio Commentary with Producer / Co-writer / Director Scott Mann and Producer James Harris
Madison Beer I Have Never Felt So Alive from the feature film Fall
Fall: The Making Of
Theatrical Trailer
Yeah…that’s not a lot. While the Making Of featurette comes in at a decent 15 minutes, and has some cool insight into how they captured some of the tower footage, the bonus features are spartan to say the least. There’s not much extra goodness here to offer more bang for your buck.
