Movie Meme: Day 02

"31 Day Movie Meme"


Day 02 | Movie that you think more people should see

I've loved many films that the mainstream audience didn't exactly embrace when they first came out (i.e. garnering less than $25 million). Some of them were at least recognized by the Oscars (Billy Elliot, Far From Heaven, Lives of Others, In America, Once) or have created a sizable cult following (Serenity, Shaun of the Dead, Donnie Darko).

This one film though fell through the cracks somehow garnering only $3 million worldwide as well as mixed opinions from critics. That film is The Fall. It stars the wonderful Lee Pace as a Hollywood stunt man who has been injured and is holed up in a hospital with the most adorable little girl played by Cantica Untaru. He tells her a fantastical tale of a bandit and his crew and their quest to save the woman he loves. We see this fantasy world through her eyes and it's just visual eye candy to the fullest. There's also a sincere chemistry between Pace and Untaru that grounds all of the more wild elements showcased in the movie.

The movie was directed and written by Tarsem Singh whose first film, The Cell, reached more than $100 million worldwide. While some of that might be because Jennifer Lopez is a bit more of a draw than Lee Pace (not for me, but whatever), it really is strange that The Fall was seen by so few people. In his four-star review Roger Ebert called it "a movie that you might want to see for no other reason than because it exist. There will never be another like it." MaryAnn Johnson over at Flick Filosopher said that "watching The Fall is a thoroughly unique experience, one that is wildly cinematic in that it never lets you forget you’re watching a movie, and yet one that is so enrapturing that you get lost in it." Um, yeah.

It was my 5th favorite film of 2008 coming in behind Slumdog Millionaire, The Dark Knight, Wall-E, and Milk. The fact that I don't yet own the film disturbs me just a little bit, but everyone should find away to get their hands on this film pronto.