La caída

The synopsis for this film is written in a shady way so when I watched this film I had no idea of what to expect apart from the focus was on a female divers goal to win an Olympic gold in Diving as it would be her last opportunity due to her age? The Real story is far more complex as the film subtly and to me in-an evasive way is about how the coach used his position to manipulate and abuse the young female divers for his own perverted satisfaction under the guise that he was their everything and to succeed and reach their potential they would need to embrace all that he taught and the ways in which he justified his actions!

The USA female gymnastics team sprang to mind whilst watching. Yes abuse is a sensitive subject in any circumstances to portray however this film was so subtle that I was nearly 45min into it before I realised that was the actual story. The acting is good but the story could have been approached and written a lot better than it was imo.

There were films about skiing, swimming, practicing gymnastics, running, this time it is question of high scale diving competition, and behind the scene dramas that sometmes occur. It shows the psychological, and also physical problems that those athletes have to face to achieve their goals. It is question here of a young woman, in her nearly thirties, for whom it is the last chance for her to hope competing for the Olympics. It is accurate, sensitive, very well shown and explained. It is good to purchase those kind of films from time to time, and not necessarily destined to wide audiences. Maybe it can also be seen as an analysis of the Mexican society, a social drama underneath the simple sport story. Worth watching, definitely. It also evokes the problem of sexual harrassment in the sport teams, between trainers and female young athletes. An issue that you find anywhere, even in France, my homeland.

No pun intended as always. This is quite the intriguing but also hard to watch stuff. Winning is everything - or as they also say: no one remembers who came in second (that is most definitely not a pun or innuendo - though sexuality does play a role here). It is about leading, it is about going under (there are so many things you can do - dad jokes or whatever you would call them - which in and of itself could be considered a pun).

The relationship between a swimmer and her coach is ... well always something that can make an interesting topic. Even more so, when it is as complicated as the one we get here. Then we have personal issues and rivalries and an up and cummer (is that a typo?). If you are not an athlete of any sorts you may not know what goes on behind the scenes - the power plays, the insane pressure ... and the own goals one has ... not always easy to achieve. As we know: there can only be one (or two if is a team sport - well that is how it usually works) ... again not an easy movie, with a lot of ups and downs (not just jumping wise) ... and a drama that has quite a few surprises for you too ...

The Fall is a film that complements itself, and does it very well.

You could perfectly identify how the first half of the movie is very different from the second half. At first you may get the feeling that the best part of the film is around the end but the truth is that the film gives you scenes that have their importance and although at first they may not seem to have a relationship or logic, the truth is that the dramatic weight that would come later would feel a little empty.

This distinction between one half and the other goes beyond the scenes, as I said it is also noticeable in the dramatic tone, it is noticeable in the performances and how these cause the characters to seem very very different from what is first presented to you.

The film puts you in a comfortable situation and makes you feel arrogant thinking that what you see is poorly done or incoherent. For the most attentive, perhaps what happens after the halfway point is predictable because the film does not hide it or conceal it in any way. Excellent way but even if you know where the film is going you may not be really prepared since the scenes that show those predictable and successful conceptions will leave you perplexed.

The Fall is one of the examples of how to build three-dimensional characters, how to show trauma or depravity in plain sight and you not realize it and even if you do, its quality is notable and outstanding.

I went into this basically knowing nothing about it - I speak Spanish and like indie film so it seemed like a good pick . It is "based on true events " upon further research I was not able to find weather this is a complication of stories , a general discourse of abuse or a specific retelling - HOWEVER- regardless of that - the feeling was true and right and fit the trauma of the subject matter .

The acting was superb, it was amazing how little was explicitly shown or stated yet you could take so much away from each scene emotionally. The power dynamic was perfectly represented between all sorts of different relationships in the film and overall - regardless of what this is based on - the message was sound and powerful and calls for change and the lasting effects of abuse and problems within elite sports. Totally worth the time and both the main actresses should be recognized - great talent and that writing .