The Fall (2006)

Some movies charm you with their innocence and beauty. A Story told in pictures not in words that leave a lasting impression in your hearts and minds. Visually stunning and emotionally touching, “The Fall (2006) leaves you flabbergasted with what it has achieved with the medium of Cinema, the Art of the 20th Century. I came to know about this film while I was looking for some movies with outstanding Cinematography and stumbled upon this gem in the American Cinematographer’s website. I was dubious about Tarsem Singh, whose previous work “The Cell” with Jennifer Lopez was not that good. But I still went on to watch this, intrigued by its storyline, a mixture of fantasy and reality, which is always magical. I loved “The Princess Bride (Dir: Rob Reiner)” and I always wanted to see “Baraka”. This movie is pretty much a fine mix of these two movies and doesn’t fall in its composite structure.
A Remake of an old Hungarian film, this the story of a girl from a migrant worker family hospitalized in a Los Angeles hospital in the early 19the century. She is befriended by a Stunt man who has severely injured himself while performing a stunt and is abandoned by his girlfriend. Shattered, he decides to end his life. He coaxes the little girl to steal Morphine from the dispensary. In order to do that he tells her a colorful, magical tale about 5 persons who sets out kill a ruthless governor for reasons of their ranging from murder of brother to murder of butterfly, Americana Exoticana. In their quest for revenge they face numerous challenges and witness wonderful things, kidnap the governor’s fiancé who falls for the masked man. As the fairy tale proceeds in the surreal, the reality intertwines itself into the events in the story diverting its trajectory, with bitter consequences.
This is a must see movie if you want to witness some breathtaking shots so beautiful that some frames equals a painting in its finesse. This has to be the best work of Cinematographer Colin Watkinson. The Costumes blends in with the elaborate and exotic nature of the story by using bright colors and traditional designs. The Music by Krishna Levy prominently uses Beethoven’s 7th symphony rendering it a mindscape of grandeur to the audience that magnifies the visual feast before them. The Movie indulges in its own surreal world, using the story being told by the stunt man as an excuse to lavishly paint a world so beautiful that rises up from the mystics of imagination once we open up our hearts. Shot on locations at a variety of beautiful places across the world that includes Bali, Rajasthan, Leh etc. This movie is a journey to a whole new world while taking you nowhere.
The Child actress, who portrays the 5 year old protagonist in the film, has to be the most talented child in the history of Cinema. It doesn’t seem like she’s performing but living. Her performance was enhanced by the director by shooting her scenes discreetly to obtain a naturalized reaction of hers to situations envisaged in the story. I was completely blown away by her performance, watching it again not for the lush scenery but this child’s performance on par with talents far senior than her. This is one prodigy to look out for. Rest of the actors also did their part well even though their roles are a bit subdued by the nature of the story. The Screenplay could have been a bit more exciting given the excellent setting. A lot of elements could have been added to the story to make it more sensitive and intelligent. But overall, it doesn’t affect the movie in a troublesome way but could have made it more appealing to a wider audience.
You don’t want to miss this movie for any earthly possible reason because as Roger Ebert pointed out there is not going to be another one like this.