The Fall is Tarsem Singh’s best film. In fact it may well be his only decent film to date. Filmed piecemeal over four years and between commercial jobs it is clear to see this is Tarsem’s passion project. As with most passion projects it suffers from indulgences but for once it entirely suits the story being told. That story revolves around the friendship between a young girl and depressed man recovering in a hospital in the 1920s. Over the course of their stay the man tells the girl fantastical stories which are brought to vivid life by her imagination.

The fantastical story of adventure and revenge weaves in and out of the hospital-bound story and is constantly being manipulated and…

It is easy to judge a director with the visual flair that Singh has on solely that aspect of film making. If we'd do that, we could say that he has more eye for the visuals than for plot and in some cases we'd be right. Here, however, we'd be very wrong indeed.

Story is what drives this film, heck, it's what it's about! This is an ode to storytelling, cinema and love and it is executed perfectly. It is difficult for a film with the story within a story structure to get the balance right, to make both equally interesting. Here, because of the enormous contrast they both have so much to like you won't have to pick favourites.…

This is a tough film to review.

Basically, you should watch it because it's:

1. Unlike anything you've ever seen before (unless you've seen it).

2. Visually magnificent.

But on to the actual review.

There are two stories here: The real one, and the fantastical one.

The real story, which begins after an incredible opening sequence, is a charming and emotional drama between an stuntman and a little girl while both recover from injuries in an early 1900's hospital. The chemistry between the two leads is fantastic, and by the end you completely care about their relationship. It's real, and that's what makes it work. The direction is thoughtful, and in the 2-hour runtime we are brought through many emotions.…

I'm surprised this was released so long ago, I'd only heard of it because of the current popularity of Lee Pace, but was wary because director "Tarsem" is responsible for one of my personal least favourite films of all time - The Cell, which looked like a early 00's heavy metal video with added J-Lo.

I can gladly say that The Fall is nowhere near as obnoxious as The Cell, but instead hones its (admittedly) striking visual style. Intercutting between a hospital in 20's LA and the colourful fantasy world created by one of its patients, The Fall looks gorgeous. It also appears to be low on CGI and big on locations (the IMDB list is pretty staggering), which is…

Where do I begin? This bold and ambitious film has to be seen, if just for the experience. The opening credits have Beethoven's majestic and emotive Symphony No.7 playing out a slow motion scene where the main protagonist suffers a serious injury while enacting a stunt for his first film. This scene sets the tone for what is to come. Finding himself in a hospital, potentially paralysed and mending a broken heart, the suicidal man befriends a young girl and weaves a lavish adventure story to win her trust and help him procure drugs with which he intends to take his own life. The fantasy scenes have a Dali like quality, visually stunning and greatly imaginative, and the cinematography both…