★★★★

David Leitch packs literally every punch in his over-stuffed but hugely likeable new action comedy, The Fall Guy. Literally. Every. Punch. Notionally an adaptation of Glen A. Larson’s eponymous early eighties TV show – a fleeting hit in the States but not so much oversees – the film romps with the hook that stunt artists are both criminally overlooked and super cool. Two irrefutable truths. It benefits from the stellar unification of Ryan Gosling, now well established in his neon, no-f***s era, and Emily Blunt, together the supporting stars of last year’s two biggest blockbusters. Alongside the zeitgeisty casting, existential engagement with AI and deep-fake anxiety gifts the film pleasing contemporary pertinence, perms and gold nylon tracksuits notwithstanding.

Gosling plays Colt Seavers, long time stunt double to Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s tousled rent-a-muscle Tom Ryder, an action star more Channing Tatum than Tom Cruise. For his part. Ryder’s a prize fool and the manufactured success story of hit producer Gail Meyer – a role chewed up by Hannah Waddingham – who has more than a passing air of former Sony stalwart Amy Pascal. Certainly, there’s something about Gail’s distinct manner and penchant for permanently sipping cola through a straw that rings too true to be entirely fictitious. One can but imagine the many such vacuous hit-makers Leitch must have encountered across the two decades he spent as a stuntman himself before taking the helm.

To that end, Emily Blunt must surely serve as Leitch’s own on-screen conduit. She plays Jody Moreno, a capable camerawoman as the film opens and first-time director in its meat and substance. Jody was, once upon a time, Colt’s girlfriend. That was before the accident: a back-breaking, industry shaking stunt gone wrong. Eighteen months on and a less manicured Colt has abandoned both Jody and his career, instead living his worst life as an undervalued valet.

It’s Gail who drags Colt back to the biz. Ryder has vamoosed and Jody’s directorial debut – a woeful sci-fi epic called “Metalstorm” – is on the brink of collapse. At pace, it’s soon revealed that there’s more to Ryder’s disappearance than meets the eye. Enabled is a narrative largely hinged on shipping Gosling from set piece to set piece and the shameless emptying of a whole toy box of VFX effects. A quirk here is, of course, the film’s reliance on real stunt artists to perform the wild and extravagant stunts on display – the production broke a world record for car spins on shoot. Mid-credits footage exposes their work, without actually going so far as to foregrounding their vitality to the whole. Acclaim for stunt work has long been missing from the awards season. The talent remains overlooked but super cool.

In essence, plotting is of secondary concern here, little more than a framework for fisticuffs, car chases and budget guzzling pyrotechnics. All hallmarks of the very best action romps. It’s terrific fun and unashamed in its gimmickry. Each and every scene comes doused in ladles of industry metatextuality, any sense of the smug negated by the infectious enthusiasm of all involved. A cast and crew ensemble devoted to the art of the blockbuster. Gifted the film-in-film conceit of “Metalstorm”, The Fall Guy revels in every opportunity to mirror back the mayhem behind the camera, from the exposé of subtle hierarchies up. Watch for the tremendous scene in which Jody finds catharsis by torching and launching Colt four times, all in the supposed aid of nailing the perfect shot.

None of this would work, of course, were Gosling and Blunt not so inherently watchable. The chemistry is dynamite, the repartee delicious. Perhaps the film around them could be a touch leaner, a tad shorter even, but such is never for want of rampant energy and the thrill of the game itself.

T.S.