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The Fall
Stars: Lee Pace, Catinca Untaru, Justine Waddell, Daniel Caltagirone, Dan Gilroy, Nico Soultanakis and Leo Bill
Director: Tarsem Singh
Scriptwriters: Tarsem Singh, Dan Gilroy and Nico Soultanakis
Cinematography: Colin Watkinson
Music: Krishna Levy
Roadside Attractions
Rating: R
Running Length: 118 minutes
 
Excuse the play on words, but don’t fall asleep in this film or you may fall out of your seat: meaning that you must pay attention to catch the storylines that weave through the movie which is set in 1915. Director Tarsem Singh (Jennifer Lopez’s “The Cell”) has quite an eye for physical setting and “The Fall” is a visual feast. The movie took several years to film, though, at times, one wonders if it took that long to pull the story together.
 
“The Fall” begins in black and white and we see a railroad bridge and efforts to find the body of a drowned horse. Then, we are in color and in a hospital room. Roy (Lee Pace) is in the movie business and has been severely injured. Crippled for life, it would seem, and then to top it all off, his girlfriend leaves him. He’s trying to adjust when into his hospital space comes Alexandria (Catinca Untaru), a patient from the children’s ward, who has a broken arm. Alexandria really is a pest, but Roy takes to her and soon they spend time by he telling her stories.
 
This is where the second part comes in, as the stories (think the “Arabian Nights”) take fanciful form with figures from the hospital staff. The hero, Black Bandit is really Roy, and the heroine to be rescued is the head nurse (Justine Waddell). Villain is the vile Odious (Daniel Caltagirone). A member of the Bandit's team is Charles Darwin (Leo Bill) and his intelligent monkey. The humor of the film is provided by the monkey making suggestions as to the origin of species. This film earns an “R” rating by the battle scenes from this fantasy. A third story concerns Alexandria and her family, plus a fourth story is that of Roy and the other actors who visit him. All in all, the audience could use a road map for guidance.
 
When the storyline gets tangled, there is always a lush background to look at whether it be mountain ranges, the Taj Mahal or a desert plain. The price of admission is also a ticket to visit the world via the lens of cinematographer Colin Watkinson.
 
What I found distracting were the antics of young Alexandria. She begins as cute and ends up as pesky. Hospitals in 1915 didn’t shield their patients as in today’s institutions and this child roams all over the place. Switching from Roy and Alexandria’s life to fantasy and back can be confusing, especially with a scene or two from Roy’s accident tossed in. Director Singh spent years in filming the movie, but it appears, not that much time in tying the story together. 
 

Copyright 2008 Marie Asner
Submitted 5/30/08