The Movie About Two People Trapped on a Radio Tower

[00:00:00]What's Gab Fall 2022, better known as the movie where two people get stuck on a radio tower, which sounds kind of cool and interesting until you have to ask, how did they get 1 hour and 47 minutes out of this premise? What even happens?

[00:00:15]Well, as one of the few people who actually watched this whole movie as opposed to just watching clips of it on TikTok with an AI voice over, >> the girl was hanging by a rope 2,000 ft above and her friend at the top pulled her up with all his strength. I can confirm some stuff happens. Not a lot, but some. I was inspired to talk about this movie because a trailer for Fall 2 just recently released this month.

[00:00:38]That's right, baby. It's a franchise.

[00:00:41]And this time, it's called Fall 2: New Heights. Just kidding. It's called Fall 2: Deadpoint. Why didn't they call it Fall New Heights? I mean, these are stupid ass movies. Let's get a little tongue and cheek with it. No one knows what Deadpoint is. That doesn't mean anything. Or you could have at least called it like fall too far to live.

[00:01:02]Fall lands in this very specific subgenre of one location thrillers. And for some reason I have been absolutely fascinated with this type of movie my entire life. The beauty of this type of film is in its elevator pitch. Like people get stuck in an elevator. People get stuck on a chair lift. Guy gets stuck in a haunted hotel room. Ryan Reynolds is buried in a coffin. People get trapped in a cube. People get trapped in a hyper cube. Drake and Josh get stuck in their treehouse. People get stuck in a 24-hour ATM. And Josh is here, too. And no matter how bad the movies are reviewed, something about just that little nugget of a premise is enough to make me sit down and watch the entire movie for some reason. Perhaps if only to see what creative lengths they have to go to to pull a whole movie out of such limited circumstances. And often times your expectations are not met at all. and you realize the whole thing it was a waste of time.

[00:01:57]>> Please, please hurry, please.

[00:02:07]>> But other times, a shockingly effective and engrossing movie can come out of it.

[00:02:11]Like, in my opinion, the king of one location thrillers, Saw one. What works so well about Saw is that everything plays out like a puzzle box or an escape room. We set up all the circumstances of the scenario like the size of the room, the ankle cuffs. Then we introduce new factors as well with the specific items they have at their disposal that they can use to try and get out of the scenario. We also have reveals as we go to uncover who these characters are and what they're doing in this position.

[00:02:38]>> I know it's you, YOU SON OF A [ __ ] >> Larry Harie.

[00:02:42]>> Then you throw in an exciting twist at the end as the cherry on top and boom, you have a great movie. In fall, they actually do kind of attempt to follow this model of the escape room. We set up all the things they have at their disposal, including a flare gun, a drone, two smartphones, a bit of rope, and the clothes on their back. In the movie, they do not have service at the top of the tower. But there is service at the bottom. Even though they're at a high vantage point with clear sight lines to the horizon, which I would assume would give them pretty good service, these are the rules of the film, okay? So, you have to at least accept that much. So, they draft an SOS message and they just have to get the phone to the bottom of the tower so it will be delivered without the phone shattering. How do they do it? If you said tie the phone to the drone and then fly it down, you'd be dead wrong. If you said fly the drone with a handwritten note towards the nearest diner over a busy roadway, then you'd be correct. But clearly, I'm already getting ahead of myself. First, we have to talk about how these two crazy kids found themselves at the top of a 2,000 ft tall radio tower in the first place. The answer is, as with all things worth doing for the IG story, let's drop it.

[00:03:56]Some thrillsekers go climbing towers just for a rush of adrenaline. But if you want to rush without risking your life, you should try out today's sponsor, Whatnot. Whatnot is the number one live stream shopping app. You can score vintage clothes, trading cards, electronics, and more all in real time.

[00:04:13]Every live stream you see is like its own virtual auction, all contained in a social media app. It's also a great social community for enthusiasts and collectors or people who just want to experience the thrill of an auction.

[00:04:24]Personally, I'm really into vintage and thrifted clothing, so I joined my first live stream of someone auctioning off throwback finds. After watching multiple pieces get picked up by the chat, I decided to jump in for a jacket that caught my eye. I was then able to score this Polo Harrington80s windbreaker which genuinely would have been a legendary find at my local thrift shop and at a price I would never get anywhere else.

[00:04:46]>> Thank you J Cot Jacot and it all happened within minutes of opening up the app. There's nothing I love more than buying stuff on my phone. There's also flash sales and simple buy it now option if the live streams aren't appealing to you. And with over a 100 categories, there's something for everyone on whatnot. So what are you waiting for? Get $15 off your first Whatnot purchase anywhere on the app by using the QR code on screen or by clicking my link in the description.

[00:05:12]Thank you so much to Whatnot for sponsoring this video. Now, back to the video. The movie opens up with a rock climbing scene. We follow three people, a couple who are just so in love and seem to be on the no, you hang up first level of just a picturesque relationship and their daredevil friend who's free soloing next to them on I guess some Alex Honold. I have no amygdala type [ __ ] But after the husband Dan tries to position his anchor inside of a like a bird's nest for some reason, a bird flies out and jump scares him, causing him to entirely leap away from the rock face and hang in midair. And I'm sorry, but this part just looks so goofy. This was not an expensive movie, but a lot of the other shots around the tower later on look really great. So, I wonder what happened here. He can't swing to the rock face. So Becky, this is Becky by the way, unhooks herself to give him more rope. Hey, maybe don't do that. Did you consider maybe don't do that? So when the anchor gives, he free falls to his death.

[00:06:16]Okay, now we have our tragic backstory.

[00:06:19]But this is so goofy, it's hard to feel anything other than amusement or embarrassment.

[00:06:25]And I feel like we're already getting to the core problem I have with this film.

[00:06:29]It doesn't know what it is. This film tries to play it so straight and so serious when they should really be having fun with this stupid premise. I genuinely believe if they just took a dummy of the actor and just threw it off a cliff, they would have gotten better results. It would have been funnier maybe, but it just it definitely would have been so much more endearing. So, if your shot is going to look like this, just get more creative and have more fun with it. After this, Becky is horribly depressed. She's an alcoholic and she's pushing everyone away. And it even gets to the point later on that night when it appears she's about to attempt when she gets a call from her friend Hunter. And Hunter's plan to pull Becky out of her endless pit of grief is to climb a 2,000 ft tall rusty abandoned radio tower for Instagram because Hunter is an influencer who goes by the name of Danger D. This just seems to be such a classic screenwriting pitfall. So many movies try to avoid modern topics and set their films a bit in the past or just in a weird world where no one has smartphones just because of [ __ ] like this. It just feels so hammy because we all live in this world and we know what it's like. So if you write a movie that includes an element of that, but you don't get it right, it just sticks out so obnoxiously because as we all know, influencers say their hashtags out loud, right? #bad >> as opposed to just writing them down in the video description afterwards, right?

[00:07:57]Oh my god, my pick just got 500 hits.

[00:08:00]I'm going #viral.

[00:08:02]>> Holy [ __ ] 300 likes.

[00:08:04]>> So throughout the movie, even when Becky clearly sets her boundaries, like saying, "Hey, I don't really want to do that because I have trauma from climbing." If you might recall, Hunter just keeps pushing and pushing and using cheap sayings like, "You can't live in fear." or using genuinely toxic phrases like, "The old Becky would have done it.

[00:08:25]>> The old Becky would have done it."

[00:08:27]>> But she goats Becky into joining her mission. So, if it hasn't been made clear yet, this movie is attempting to be a meditation on grief and trauma. The problem is it's extremely reductive and even kind of harmful at times in my opinion. Becky is pushing her dad away who only wants to help her. All right, that makes sense. The point that her dad is making though is that she's putting her dead husband on a pedestal.

[00:08:51]>> I said that maybe he didn't belong on this pedestal that you were putting him up on.

[00:08:55]>> Kind of weird. But then he's proven right because it's revealed that he wasn't as good of a guy as she thought.

[00:09:02]What? He actually was cheating on her with her best friend. Turns out he's not as good of a guy as she thought. So, she can get over it now. No, he was right about Dan. He was just trying to help me.

[00:09:12]>> It's such a copout to allow the main character to move on with her life guiltfree. It feels so lazy. Also, the movie wants to tackle the topic of self harm, but then they have her go and do something actually, but now it's framed like she's taking her agency back. when you deliberately portray your character as a potential harm to herself, but then frame these extremely selfish, irresponsible, and destructive actions as some kind of epic win, it just feels a little icky to me. But anyways, once they get started, it instantly becomes obvious that this whole thing is a stunt for Instagram. And when Becky says she doesn't want to be in the video, Hunter violates that boundary, too. Now, look, I get it. All influencers are soul sucking parasites.

[00:10:03]So, this character makes perfect sense, right?

[00:10:05]>> I think there's someone hanging right there.

[00:10:06]>> It's just funny how they try to act like she has this heart of gold underneath.

[00:10:10]And the the whole influencer thing is just a persona. Becky says that she should be herself on Instagram instead of danger D. Except when she's being herself, it's just her saying really empty platitudes about how you can't let fear control your life. And it sounds so cringy and so fake.

[00:10:28]>> Do not let the spear consume you. Come at it head on and kick its ass.

[00:10:32]>> But it just comes across like the writers saying, "We need more real stuff on social media instead of all the bullshit." But the real stuff is just faux wisdom that would go right at home on one of those wood board things that you get at Pottery Barn that you hang in the kitchen. And even when she's not recording, she's still just as annoying and reckless. Hunter even tells Becky that she got over Dan's death, so Becky should be able to as well.

[00:10:58]>> After Dan died, I was afraid of my own shadow, but I pushed through.

[00:11:03]>> I mean, look at me. I was sad over your husband's death, but now I'm over it.

[00:11:07]See, it's just that easy. So, her Instagram persona, it's still just her.

[00:11:12]She's just using a little bit of charisma. So, the whole thing just feels so out of touch. She almost causes a semitruck accident because she's recording while driving and then she posts a dead bleeding out deer on Maine.

[00:11:26]Dude, her account would be getting nothing but unadulterated hate 24/7. And when they get stuck on the tower, it's nothing but the consequences of their own actions. So, it's just hard to feel sympathy for these characters. There would be a moist critical video dropping the next day called the Danger D situation is crazy. So, they get to the tower, hop the fence, ignore the signage, but I do have to give it to this movie. When they start climbing the tower, it's pretty well done. They do a really good job of actually invoking that stomach churning feeling that you get with heights. We get close-ups of the rusted metal and the little bolts moving, and the performance from the lead actress is actually doing a lot of the heavy lifting towards making you feel like they are climbing up this tower. I did actually feel like I was locked in during this part. And they get to the top. Again, there's some pretty great shots. And for some reason, to overcome her fear and I guess her grief, Hunter makes Becky hang off the edge while only hanging on to her hand. Are we serious, Dan? And then they spread Dan's ashes. And it's a very somber, drawn out moment. I appreciate that this movie wants to have heart and subtext.

[00:12:34]Or I shouldn't even say subtext, I should just say text, because there's nothing sub about it. All of the themes and everything this movie wants you to feel is said out loud every 5 seconds.

[00:12:45]>> Life is short, too short. You got to use every moment.

[00:12:50]>> It's just so schmaltzy and overdone.

[00:12:53]>> You have to do something that makes you feel alive. And that [ __ ] that would spread that message far and wide.

[00:13:00]>> But to be fair, this movie does deliver on its premise. They really do get stuck on top of a radio tower, which begs the question, how will they get down?

[00:13:15]Once their ladder breaks and they become trapped on the tiny little platform at the top of the tower, they're in a pretty bad situation. Becky has a bad leg wound and the bag with the drone and all of their water has fallen down onto this dish a little bit a little ways down. So, they attempt a few things to get out of this situation. They don't have service. But even so, every iPhone comes with a built-in SOS beacon. But look, iPhones ruin movies. So sometimes you just have to accept that phones work unrealistically just so the movie can happen. Okay? Even still, instead of trying to contact 911 or some kind of emergency service, Hunter decides to try and make an Instagram post saying that they're stuck and begging people for help, which is just way more of a risk.

[00:13:58]Like, I don't understand. She has a big following, but you're still relying on complete strangers in the fact that they will not assume that it's a hoax or a prank. Either way, they put her phone into her shoe with a sock and her bra.

[00:14:12]Then they chuck it off the tower only for it to be demolished on impact. Now, to be fair, at this point, the drone is still in the bag. So, it's not until after the phone breaks and then realize no one's coming that she risks going down to try to get it. Even still, they did not give the phone a good enough chance to make it to the bottom unscathed. They should have taken off all their clothes, okay? And I'm not saying this out of horniness, but take off all your clothes, tie it into a giant ball that you can wrap around the phone. And I mean, your only hope at this point, because they don't know if they can reach the bag, is dropping the phone. Except for one thing. Actually, I forgot about the flare gun. Okay, let's talk about the flare gun. To me, this is one of the dumbest things in the entire movie. So, they have one flare and decide to wait till dusk to use it to ensure that people will see it. There are these two drifters having a barbecue outside their RV in close proximity to the tower. So, they shoot the flare and it's framed like their only hope is these two guys. Luckily, the guys see the flare, realize they're up there, only for them to go and steal their [ __ ] and leave them there.

[00:15:18]>> No. What the hell? They're stealing my freaking car.

[00:15:22]>> What?

[00:15:22]>> Are youing serious, dude? I'm sure. I'm sure. But whatever the thing is, you shot a flare off in the night sky at the top of a tower which is going to be visible for miles around. Especially the diner they were eating at the previous night, plus all the planes flying by.

[00:15:40]But no, of course, the flare gun was only put there just in case two guys were having a barbecue in their RV and in close proximity in the desert because otherwise there'd be no point in shooting off a flare at the top of the tower. This might be the most nonsensical [ __ ] in the film. They realize no one's coming, so Hunter uses the rope to lower herself to try to get the bag. It's not long enough, so she has to untie herself and then jump off.

[00:16:04]Then she gets the backpack, puts it on the rope, and then has to leap again to try to land on the backpack. Then she climbs up while Becky is also lifting her up on the same rope. But right at the top, Hunter falls. however, were robbed of her falling off the tower as she grabs back onto the bag and Becky pulls her up. There's a twist here, however. It is later revealed that in this moment, Hunter actually did not catch the bag. She fell to her death and landed on this dish perfectly. And for the rest of the movie, Becky is just hallucinating Hunter being there. This is the stupidesting twist and actually ruined the rest of the movie for me. I think this could have actually been a somewhat enjoyable movie if they didn't try to do this pull the rug out from under you [ __ ] A good twist should make a movie better in retrospect, not worse. So, instead of upping the stakes and giving us a shocking death moment, you know, the fall that we've been waiting for this entire time and then having that oh [ __ ] moment where you realize Becky is now completely on her own. We just keep Hunter in the movie.

[00:17:09]Not to mention that in your head, you're thinking how stupid it is that she was able to fall from that height and catch the backpack on her way down at the end of the rope. Even if it's revealed later on that that didn't actually happen, in the moment, I still rolled my eyes and lost faith in the movie, I can't now retroactively not feel that emotion that you made me feel. It's as if the writers and the filmmakers had no confidence in their ability to pull off the rest of the film without dialogue. So, they panicked and kept her in the movie just so that they could continue to say out loud to each other what they're feeling and thinking and doing the rest of the time. And just to reiterate, I've been waiting this whole stinking movie to see one of these characters face the repercussions of their dumbass actions.

[00:17:54]The movie is called Fall and this is the poster. For the price of admission, you have to show me at least one person plummet to their death off thising tower. That's why we're here, dude. But no, you have to rob me of that. And then later on, just show me that she's been already dead just a little bit further down on perfectly on this dish.

[00:18:13]>> I am there, remember?

[00:18:17]>> Anyway, she now has the drone and tries to fly it to the diner. So it but it's out of battery. So she has to scale this pole vertically like 25 ft upward with no shoes on and stick the charger into the light socket and then just hang there for hours while it charges. And while she's doing this, she's getting accosted by vultures. This director must hate birds, dude. Birds are the ultimate evil in the fall universe. So she gets the drone charged and tries to fly it to town only for it to get obliterated by a semitr, which was so funny. This actually played like a comedic beat.

[00:18:52]>> It's going to work.

[00:18:54]>> So, why didn't she just tie the phone to the drone and fly it down? Technically, it seems like she needs the phone to connect to the drone. And the other phone is gone. But it's also not specifically said that she needs her phone. As far as I can tell, the phone connects and then it's just there to show you where the drone is going. But she doesn't need to know where it's going. She just needs to fly it downward. Just connect to the drone. tie the phone to it and fly it down until it's in range for the text message to deliver. But no. So, with all hope lost, her only choice is to play dead and then kill a vulture and eat its raw meat for energy. What the dude? Not only is she just going to start vomiting and having diarrhea from eating raw poultry, but she's dehydrated, so her body can't even digest anything she eats, but this somehow gives her superpowers, and she's able to scale down the tower on the rope, then leap to the dish where Hunter's body is. No problem. She then shoves the phone into Hunter's shoe, and then shoves the shoe into Hunter's open body cavity. Then she pushes the whole body off. Why was the shoe necessary?

[00:20:03]Like I feel like her putting the phone in the shoe then trying to shove that in her body risks having it the shoe fly out when she pushes the body off of the tower, but whatever. I don't even know why I'm going on about this. She gets rescued somehow. I'd like to see how they got her down from there, but whatever. We end with Conquest showing up and we get a nice moment between him and his daughter and he's like, "Let's get you home." I'm sorry. Let's get her to aing hospital before she dies from blood poisoning from her infected wound.

[00:20:35]What are you talking about? She also says, "I'm going to be okay now, Dad.

[00:20:40]I'm really going to be okay.

[00:20:41]>> I am, you know, I'm going to be okay."

[00:20:43]>> So, what's the message here? That if you have a traumatic experience, just go and have an even more traumatic experience and they'll cancel each other out. Like, how is she going to be okay after that?

[00:20:55]And that's fall. I pretty much skipped over all the drama that's revealed about how Hunter was secretly sleeping with Becky's fiance because I just couldn't be bothered to care about this drama.

[00:21:06]Plus, we already went over how shitty of a person Hunter is. And that's just adding on top of it. Like, dude, whatever. You get the picture. God, I love you.

[00:21:14]>> Safe to say, I cannot wait for Fall 2: New Heights. Apparently, we're going to be following Hunter's older sister as she and her friend go to Thailand to do a dangerous mountain plank walk as a tribute to Hunter. So, it's the exact same premise. I really hope they make 10 fall movies and everyone is just the characters doing some dangerous [ __ ] as a tribute to one of the characters who died in the previous movie. Anyways, thank you so much for watching. The Predator franchise review should be coming out next month, so stick around for that. Thank you so much to my lovely patrons. If you want to support me, it's in the description. And that's all I got for today. So, bye-bye. Kisses.