Man on a Ledge
doesn't know what kind of film it is. On the one hand it's a tale of
redemption, about a man breaking out of prison in order to clear his name. But
then it turns into a generic heist story wherein the man breaks out in order to
use his suicide as a diversion for his brother's highly orchestrates theft of a
diamond that originally sent him to jail. It's all very messy, ultimately
making for an uneven adventure.
But with that said, I do concede
that what Man on a Ledge lacks in
continuity and sensibility it makes up for with its action sequences.
Most of the film takes place with
Nick Cassidy, played by an utterly charming Sam Worthington, standing several
stories above a busy New York City street. This option allowed for a hefty spike in intensity, but I
warn you, if you are not a fan of heights than you will feel uneasy for much of
the film.
Man on a Ledge
should have been a one-man show (or movie rather). If it had been than I would happily give it higher
praise. Unfortunately every actor
who is not named Sam Worthington drags the feature down.
Elizabeth Banks plays against type
as a hostage negotiator tasked with having to convince our protagonist to come
off the ledge. We first see her get out of bed and lazily arrive to work, and
its as if she never truly work up, constantly sleepwalking through the role.
Likewise go-to bad guy Ed Harris is stuck with a disappointing character in David
Englander as he is just as terribly written as Bank's Lydia.
Man
on a Ledge has its moments. It borrows liberally from many successful films
of the genre. But I admit that while
the twist is never fully fleshed out or explained, I was mildly intrigued by
what might have been
