Man on a Ledge is a film more desperate for a happy ending than an escaped felon in a massage parlor. I guess you have to expect it, what with the “imprisoned innocent” set-up and all. As a people, we Americans don’t consistently support the young, the old, the poor, the tired, the masses, the deranged, the constipated or the helpless, but we always seem to rally behind the man jailed for a crime he didn’t commit.
Sam Worthington is back, desperately trying to make an impression. He seems determined that somebody will figure out he’s an actor of some sort. Can’t hurt to try, Sam, Godspeed. So here’s good guy Nick (Worthington), a former cop, wrongly jailed for theft and murder. He escapes bondage while at his father’s funeral. Escaping jail is just so easy in the movies, huh? And the ratio of innocent men/guilty men among cinematic escapees has got to be at least 3:1. And then fugitive Nick goes public (because he’s your buddy), staging his one act plea off Broadway — three blocks over and 22 floors up off Broadway. Man on a Ledge does deserve some street cred here. A man purposefully strolling the periphery of a building on the 22nd floor might indeed attract attention. And probably a camera crew or two.
At this point, I’m going to tell you something you’re not going to believe, but you have to promise to hear me out: this guy escaping prison, and feigning suicidal behavior for some attention to right a wrong? This is the plausible part of Man on a Ledge. You see, meanwhile, Nick has employed his brother Joey (Jamie Bell) and brother’s girlfriend Angie (Genesis Rodriguez – great name) to steal the diamond from a high security vault across the street. (Nobody’s watching that, get it? It’s all just a ruse!) This is the same diamond Nick was jailed for taking in the first place – and everyone involved is guessing where it is and that it still exists. Yes, this is serious. This is your big chance to right a wrong and you’re breaking twenty laws to piss off a man powerful enough to set somebody up for murder … on a hunch.
Movies like this never quite resolve petty issues like breaking, entering, robbery, vandalism, destruction. No matter how much your cause is justified, these are still crimes, just not on celluloid. Long as good happens, the rest gets conveniently ignored.
I don’t care who you are. You spend a few hours on the ledge of a building, you have a death wish. There are serious psychological behaviors to be addressed. This is best way to get attention? Really? What are the odds of success here? Aren’t they far short of failure or death? What if you slip? What if weather happens? I’m a little put off by the minds choosing to put this film into play. I think you all have a bit of a death wish.
Rated PG-13 , 102 Minutes
D: Asger Leth
W: Pablo F. Fenjves
Genre: American Fairy Tale
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: People who need a happy ending so badly they’ll pretend anything to get there.
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: Tycoons
