If you too have vertigo, you’ll probably see “Fall” as just a horror movie instead of a thriller. Director Scott Mann certainly packed this latest endeavor with enough scares and bloodshed to blur the genre lines. As a result, “Fall” feels overwhelmed with gadgets and traps at times, but it also delivers a heck of an adrenaline rush.
The film opens with a tragedy. Becky (Grace Caroline Currey) and her husband, Dan (Mason Gooding), are climbing a cliff with their friend Hunter (Virginia Gardner), when an accident causes Dan to fall to his death. Just a year later, Hunter brings Becky back into the rock climbing game, promising her an easy half-day jaunt up a 2,000-foot TV tower. The two were separated; Hunter spent the last year becoming an influencer while Becky drank and contemplated suicide. But when they find themselves stranded on a small platform at the top of the tower, reconciliation takes precedence over survival.
“Fall” loses its grip in the final act, as the tension gives way to ridiculous horror. Yet its twists are so bizarre they’re kinda funny, and the actors are selling them hard.
Above all, it is an impressive feat of cinema. Most of the film was shot on a 60ft rig on top of a mountain, to keep things realistic. Of course, that only makes “Fall” even more heartbreaking. As Becky and Hunter grapple with death, I kept flattening myself in my seat like a literally frightened cat. Be glad he’s not playing in IMAX.
To fall
Rated PG-13 for Ahhhhh!!! Duration: 1h47. In theaters.
