Two Takes on 'Man On A Ledge'

'Man On A Ledge' Falls Flat

By Michael Lopez

Though it's got a fantastic cast and a storyline with a lot of potential, this past weekend's Man On A Ledge failed to get us jumping out of our seats. Perhaps it's the movie's clichéd heist sequences, or the cheesy "twists" we could see a mile away. Whatever the reason, this is one Ledge you'll want to step away from.

The movie actually starts out interesting enough, with the mysterious Nick Cassidy (played by Avatar’s Sam Worthington) checking into a hotel, then throwing open the window to face his uncertain future. Why would this well-dressed, healthy-looking "businessman" want to take a swan dive from a twelve-story building? Soon the flashbacks fill in the clues.

The problem is, the clues aren't that compelling. We eventually find out that Cassidy is an escaped fugitive who's been framed for a crime he didn't commit. But rather than end it all over a trial gone bad, this innocent anti-hero is using the Ledge as a decoy for a much grander scheme.

Soon we're following the lives of Nick's devoted younger brother and his sexy Latina girlfriend (played by Tr3s fave Genesis Rodriguez), as well as a ruthless businessman played by Ed Harris. Ledge makes use of familiar stars Elizabeth Banks and Edward Burns too, as police officers trying to convince Cassidy not to jump.

But unfortunately, each character comes off paper-thin. Rodriguez falls prey to numerous Latin stereotypes (though we do get to see her in some skimpy lingerie), Harris plays his bad guy way too over-the-top, and Banks' hung over NYPD negotiator follows beats we've seen in way too many cop movies.

Venezuelan native Pablo Fenjves is credited as the Ledge's screenwriter and, though we love supporting Latino talent, we think he should've gone back to the editing room. The film's dialogue is dull, the entire backstory feels jumbled, and as far as climactic finales go, this one falls extremely flat.

Bottom line: Man On A Ledge feels like it "almost" could have been a classic. There are a lot of elements it has in its favor, but ultimately, none of them connect. Perhaps the studio rushed it to theaters before it was fully fleshed out, perhaps budget constraints hurt the final product, or perhaps everyone involved just made a stinker of a movie.

Did you watch Man On A Ledge this weekend? Sound off in the comments or @MTV3.

A pretty good Saturday night movie

By Horacio Garcia

The latest addition of the year to a really long list that exploits our instinctive fear of heights (consider we just had Tower Heist and Mission Impossible…) is a thriller by Sam Worthington who seems to be living in a trailer behind the studio, given the many projects he's gotten into.

Worthington right now is developing the Avatar and the Clash of the Titans series at the same time while manages to throw a couple of thrillers in the pot. The man's on fire.

Man on a Ledge is directed by Asger Leth, a somewhat well-known documentary maker who uses his experience shooting real people with mixed results; on one side the premise is great and the cast includes some of the best secondary actors there are, with Ed Harris and Edward Burns at the head of the ensemble.  On the flipside, after the first hour the plot that even with the mystery element included had been relatively straightforward becomes very convoluted and the movie loses traction.

The film begins when Nick Cassidy (Worthington) steps out the window of the 24th floor of the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan. Suicide by jumping, once a popular New York feature (after the stock market collapse in 1929, local papers would keep the record of how many people were jumping daily) has disappeared do to the installation of secure windows, so the makers of the movie should first of all thank the Roosevelt Hotel for keeping Big Apple traditions alive.

In any case, fast enough and thanks to a series of flash backs and cuts-away, we learn that Nick was framed by a bad millionaire named David Englander (played by Ed Harris as professionally as ever) and accused of stealing 40 million dollars in diamonds and he's out to get some payback. Nick's plan includes that his brother Joey (Jamie Bell) and Joey’s very hot girlfriend Angie (Miami's own Genesis Rodriguez, whom we know from all those telenovelas like Doña Barbara or Prisionera…) actually steal the diamonds from Englander to prove Nick innocent.

The plan also includes that Nick gives Joey and Angie enough time to do their thing; enters Elizabeth Banks as police negotiator Lydia Mercer, whose record dealing with suicide individuals is not very good so Nick knows she is going to be extra careful.

Man on a Ledge could’ve been one of the best thrillers of the year and truth is that the solid cast saves it from being actually bad, but some patches of clumsy writing take away some of its thunder. Ed Harris and Jamie Bell get especially crappy lines and Genesis’s character is too stereotypical the hot Latina (the heist includes that she has to strip down to underwear at one point which is not bad, by the way, but feels a little unnecessary).

Bottom line: Despite these problems, Man on a Ledge manages to deliver enough gut wrenching moments and that's what is supposed to do. All things considered, is a pretty good Saturday night movie.

Tags Blogger: Michael Lopez, Ed Harris, Elizabeth Banks, Genesis Rodriguez, Man on a Ledge, Movie Reviews, Movies & CineMás, Pablo Fenjves, Sam Worthington