The Ledge

 

The Ledge 2011

• Director: Matthew Chapman
• Seen by this director: Slow Burn
• Based on the book:  no
• Cast: Charlie Hunnam, Terrance Howard, Liv Tyler, Patrick Wilson
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Charlie Hunnam – Pacific Rim, Children of Men, Cold Mountain, Whatever Happened to Harold Smith?
• Terrence Howard – Prisoners, The Butler, Ray, Crash, Dead Presidents
• Liv Tyler – Ad Astra, The Leftovers, Lonesome Jim, Lord of the Rings etc, Armageddon
• Patrick Wilson – The Conjuring, Prometheus, Lakeview Terrace, Phantom of the Opera, Angels in America
• Why? Possibly interesting.
• Seen: 25 March 2023      

       Gavin (Hunnam) is a hotel manager, an atheist and a flirt who hides his grief over the loss of his daughter and wife. When the film opens, he is standing on a ledge, ready to jump. Hollis (Howard) is the detective trying to talk him out of committing suicide and struggling with the recent revelation that he is not the father to his children. Shana (Tyler) is a student, a musician, a recently hired cleaner at Gavin’s hotel, a former hooker and junkie, Gavin’s new neighbour. Joe (Wilson) is Shana’s husband, a homophobic fanatical Christian.

       With flashbacks Gavin tells Hollis how he came to be on the ledge and why he is being forced to commit suicide. It’s a surprisingly strong film, intelligent, thoughtful and suspenseful, with an unusually frank conflict between atheism and religion. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a film in which the protagonist is an atheist. More of that, please. 

4* of 5