Although it isn't a comedy, MAN ON A LEDGE has more laughs than last fall's similarly themed TOWER HEIST, but most of them aren't intentional.
It's not because the plot, which concerns an ex con who climbs out on the ledge of a high rise Manhattan hotel room to distract everybody from noticing a heist at another building nearby, is so ridiculously implausible - it's just pulled in so many ridiculously implausible directions that it's laughable.
Sam Worthington (AVATAR, CLASH OF THE TITANS) is the title character who toys with the police, including Edward Burns as a a wise cracking detective and Elizabeth Banks as a NYPD negotiator, as he seemingly threatens to jump.
You see, Worthington was screwed over by Ed Harris as a Donald Trump type tycoon, so he's enacting a convoluted revenge involving a big-time diamond heist. It involves Jamie Bell (as Worthington's brother) with his squeeze Génesis Rodríguez breaking into Harris's vault while our hero keeps the cops and the crowd occupied.
Everything moves along briskly, but it's such standard stake-less stuff that it takes no hold.
Worthington doesn’t have a worthwhile character to inhabit, the glibness of Banks’ part would be better suited for a sitcom, Harris doesn’t care enough to even slightly nibble the scenery, and Rodríguez is on hand only to provide cleavage.
Also misused is Kyra Sedgwick as a TV reporter on the sidelines milking the event for ratings - a role that’s been done to death and it never comes alive here.
Laughs of the eye-rolling variety are all MAN ON A LEDGE is good for, and there aren’t enough of those to make it recommendable.
So I know it sounds like it could be something worth stopping and taking a look at, but move along folks!
Nothing worth seeing here.
More later...
Worthington doesn’t have a worthwhile character to inhabit, the glibness of Banks’ part would be better suited for a sitcom, Harris doesn’t care enough to even slightly nibble the scenery, and Rodríguez is on hand only to provide cleavage.
Also misused is Kyra Sedgwick as a TV reporter on the sidelines milking the event for ratings - a role that’s been done to death and it never comes alive here.
Laughs of the eye-rolling variety are all MAN ON A LEDGE is good for, and there aren’t enough of those to make it recommendable.
So I know it sounds like it could be something worth stopping and taking a look at, but move along folks!
Nothing worth seeing here.
More later...
I have not seen the film yet, nor do I know if I ever will, but if I would have I probably would have entirely agreed with you. I've seen the trailer countless times during all my visits at the cinema, and every single time I had to roll my eyes at all the cliches and Hollywood tropes that it spewed forth.
ReplyDeleteAlso, am I the only one who just can't see Sam Worthington as a leading man? I mean, the guy is a pretty good actor, I'm not questioning that, but to me it seems that he'd be more suited in less prevailing roles. Some actors have the screen presence necessary to lead a film, others don't. My opinion is that Worthington doesn't.