Homefront movie
7.25 out of 10
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire movie
8.75 out of 10
Disney's Frozen movie
10.0 out of 10
Delivery Man movie
6.75 out of 10
Thor
8.25 out of 10

Friday, January 27, 2012

Man On A Ledge

On The Edge

Rated: PG-13  Violence and brief strong language
Release Date: January 27, 2012
Runtime: 1 hr 42 min

Director: Asger Leth
Writers: Pablo F. Fenjves
Cast: Sam Worthington, Elizabeth Banks, Jamie Bell, Anthony Mackie, Edward Burns, Ed Harris


SYNOPSIS: Ex-cop turned escaped con stands on the ledge of a Manhattan hotel claiming his innocence for the crime he was imprisoned. But while a police psychologist tries to talk him off the ledge, his stunt may only be a distraction for a bigger crime.

REVIEW: Asger Leth, director of the documentary Ghosts of Cité Soleil, takes a stab at the mainstream with Sam Worthington (Avatar) and Ed Harris (Appaloosa) with a high stepping suspense thriller from TV movie writer Pablo F. Fenjves (Trophy Wife). Can both writer and director make a successful flick without slipping off the edge? Let's find out.
Cop Nick Cassidy (Sam Worthington, The Debt) on a moonlight assignment for real estate mogul David Englander (Ed Harris, National Treasure: Book of Secrets) is accused of stealing Englander's 40 million dollar diamond and sentenced to twenty five years in prison. Even with help from his former partner Mike Ackerman (Anthony Mackie, Real Steel), Nick has run out of appeals. But when his father passes away, he is given opportunity to attend the funeral and takes the opportunity to make a daring break from the guards. Cassidy makes his way to the 21st floor of the Roosevelt Hotel on 45th Street and Madison Avenue, eats a large meal, and steps out onto the building's ledge to wait for the police and media to arrive. Asking specifically for Lydia Mercer (Elizabeth Banks, The Next Three Days) as the negotiator, Cassidy strings the cops and the gathering crowd along while a more calculated plan is set into motion.

From the trailers you might get the idea that Man on a Ledge is similar to Colin Ferrell's Phone Booth, focused on a solitary man in a limited venue trying to affect change. But where Ferrell's film was a psychological thriller where he was placed in stationary peril - a phone booth - at the whim of a calculating psychopathic killer, Sam Worthington becomes the Man on a Ledge by his own volition to clear his name of the crimes he was accused and convicted of. The tension is still present as Nick Cassidy puts his life in jeopardy with the soles of his shoes hanging off the stone ledge.

Part police drama, part heist film, Man on a Ledge breaks up the singular story of Nick Cassidy with flashbacks from his time in prison and his escape from confinement. Also in the mix are Nick's brother Joey (Jamie Bell, The Eagle) and his sassy girlfriend Angie (Genesis Rodriguez). Lydia Mercer, fresh off a failed jumper save of a rookie cop, must face a disapproving squad, fellow negotiator Jack Dougherty (Edward Burns, 27 Dresses) and commander Dante Marcus (Titus Welliver, The Town) as she attempts to bring Cassidy in from the edge. David Englander rules with a iron real estate fist as he deals with zoning committees, investment meetings, and men looking to jump off a building accused of stealing the diamond he so prized. Lastly, a opportunistic reporter Suzie Morales (Kyra Sedgwick, Gamer) distills the play-by-play of the neck-craning events to all who will watch.

Worthington is committed to the role, muttering up enough piercing stares, slipping gasps, and furrowed-brow scowls to work throughout the film. Banks' performance is serviceable, but she just doesn't click with Worthington as well as she does with Edward Burns. Bell and Rodriguez, on the other hand, work and play well together as Joey and Angie argue and weave their way through Nick's master plan. Ed Harris is a worthy adversary as the mogul Englander but doesn't get nearly enough screen time to be effective.

Man on a Ledge aspires to be a lofty suspenseful action drama. The elements are all in place, whether suspended by nylon ropes, perched on the edge of the wind against the side of a building, or smashing gift watches against the wall behind the presenter's head. The problem with an aspiration of a film is that sometimes you lose your footing and tumble over the edge. i look forward, instead, to Sam Worthington Wrath of the Titans

WORTH: Rental

1 comment:

  1. There is a lot to be entertained by here but there is also way too much that we can’t actually take seriously and it actually ends up being more of just a silly thriller that has a good cast, that doesn’t really do much. Good review. Check out mine when you can.

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