Whatever you do…don’t look down!

I went into this film when it first released knowing that it was a low budget affair. Made for just $3 million, I didn’t expect much from this at all. Yet, this became another perfect example of how brilliant a film can be, when the film-makers are forced to use every penny to great effect and when the studios simply can’t interfere with an independent production.

Below is the blurb on the back of the Blu-Ray cover.

A fast drop and a sudden stop awaits Becky and Hunter, two experienced climbers, as they find themselves trapped 2,000 feet up an abandoned radio tower in the desert. Highly trained and resourceful, these climbers were still not ready for every eventuality.
A series of unfortunate events sees their gear and supplies taken from them and as the temperatures climb and the vultures circle, the chance of survival begins to fall apart rapidly.

There are a few things this film doesn’t do well, but mostly, this film gets all the right heartbeat jumps in all the right places. So, as per usual, let’s take a bit of a deep dive into this under-rated modern classic.

The Cast

There are literally only three main players throughout this film. Grace Caroline Currey (Shazam!, Annabelle: Creation) stars as Becky, Virginia Gardener plays the role of Hunter, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan plays Becky’s father, James. There are other bit players in this film, but these are the three main roles that occupy 90% of the film.
While both actresses are not particularly famous, they both carry this film with enthusiasm and skill. At no point did I wince at any of their performances, or find that they were wooden or over-the-top. Very well balanced in pretty much every scene they are in.
Jeffrey Dean Morgan has pretty much a cameo role in this, and does seem to ‘phone-in’ the dialogue. I dare say he agreed to do this for one day of shooting for a tidy sum. It also helped the marketing by adding his name to the project, given his meteoric rise to fame with The Walking Dead.

Becky and Hunter on top of the 2,000 ft tower / Fall (2022)

The Script

I’m not a script-writer, so I couldn’t say how easy or difficult it is to write one. I would imagine that this script was very hard to work through and keep it entertaining and engaging given there are only two main characters on-screen for the most part.
Yet the script and the storytelling elements are so well crafted, much of the scenery and the silences convey just as much as the scripting does. There wasn’t a moment where I thought I was becoming bored of the dialogue, the intentions or the actions of these characters, and that is a testament to great writing, and great performances. Writers Jonathan Frank and Scott Mann pretty much nail the tension in every scene.

The Score

Tim Despic creates a very minimal score here, and I think this choice was absolutely spot-on. The music conveys the fear and the trauma of the unfolding events a top of a tower extremely well.
There are tracks here by The Cardigans, as well as Madison Beer and the ever brilliant Cherry Pie by Warrant.

The Visual and Special Effects

It’s here that we can see where the majority of the money was spent on this production, and it never let’s up, or let’s you the viewer, down. The practical effects work is outstanding, and although you kind-of know how it was pulled off, it’s still fascinating when you watch the making-of. It’s all very well considered and planned, as well as constructed set design, all of which play a major part in the visual effects.
Green Screen or Blue Screen is used here, but unlike some effects houses who try too hard to pull a chromakey from a green screen, the effects team here did so with skill.
I appreciate every scene in a film where the effects are so well thought about, it’s almost impossible to see the lines where it’s real, and it’s not. I found this example in spades with this film.

The Director

Scott Mann, who also co-wrote this film, does an excellent job in directing an inexperienced cast, and creating the tension and atmosphere so many big budget rivals simply fail to capture. Scott has not directed anything of real note before this, and so I can’t really comment on his works, but I do expect to see great things coming from this obviously skilled director.

Blu-Ray & Extras

The film is presented in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio and has a runtime of 111 minutes. The disc is good quality with great artwork printed on it. The slip cover in the case is also very good quality.
The extras on the disc are few, but well worth checking out, especially the documentary on the making of Fall, which really opens your eyes to how creative they had to be in bringing this film to the screen. There is also a music video by Madison Beer “I Have Never Felt More Alive” which features in the film. There is also audio commentary for the theatrical version with the director and writer Scott Mann.
The copy I have contains the Theatrical and Uncut versions of the film. it’s here that I found the differences to be strange, but welcoming too.
The Theatrical release found itself being re-dubbed in places to remove the profanity to make it a 12a. The Uncut version removes the dubbing, replacing it with the original audio. The scenes where the audio was re-dubbed in the theatrical cut used Deep Fake technology to hide the actors facial movements when using the bad language.

Overall Thoughts

There are instances in this film where maybe some of the acting comes off as a bit…cheesy?! I think it’s overall very well acted with the exception of Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who is clearly only interested in making a few dollars and going home early in the production. So with the marketing relying heavily on him being in the film, it’s a bit of a misleading case of advertising.
Ok, so these are very minor gripes, and I only mention them because I genuinely find it difficult to find fault.

There is however, the issue with the premise of the film, and that is the idea of heights. Some of us are ok with it, and are not affected by this at all. Some of us are absolutely fine with the feeling of claustrophobia and being trapped and confined in a small space. This film has both of these elements in abundance. While I’m not afraid of heights, I am however, claustrophobic and so I couldn’t escape the tension and fear this film brings to the table, making me feel like I was there with them on top of that rusting tower.

With “Fall 2: Deadfall” hitting theatres in September, watch this first, then go watch the second. Something tells me you’ll have a great, if not an anxiety filled experience.

I give this Blu-Ray and film…