She Likes to Watch

It’s hot.

Sticky. Sweaty. Sweltering.

As The Tribune reported, my home city saw temperatures in the mid-80s as early as 8 a. m. yesterday. In fact, San Luis Obispo reached a record high of 99 degrees — topping the previous record of 98 degrees in 1981.

Today we could see triple digits.

I like the sun as much as the next person. But when the mercury hits 85 degrees by the time I’ve slurped down my breakfast cereal, it’s too damn hot for me.

This time of year, the best place to beat the heat is in a nice, air-conditioned movie theater.

Give me a mega-sized soda and I’ll trade a poolside lounge chair for a cushy movie seat any day of the week. (This philosophy might explain my unnatural pallor and less-than-impressive physique.)

Fortunately, studios are already kicking out some pretty decent summer flicks: “Iron Man,” “The Incredible Hulk” and “Prince Caspian” among them.

Now there’s another hit in theaters: “The Fall.”

Directed by Tarsem Singh, who helmed the visually stunning but muddled “The Cell,” “The Fall” took nearly two years to reach local movie theaters. Now playing at the Palm Theatre, it is simply not to be missed.

Set in 1920s Los Angeles, “The Fall” centers around two patients recovering at a country hospital.

One is silent movie stuntman Roy Walker (Lee Pace), injured in a fall from a railroad bridge. The other is Alexandria (Cantinca Untaru), a gutsy Romanian girl with a boundless imagination and a tenuous grasp on the English language.

As the two form a tender friendship, Roy spins a fantastic tale about the mysterious Masked Bandit and his crew — an Indian warrior, an escaped slave, an Italian explosives expert and (surprise!) naturalist Charles Darwin.

At first the story is fairly innocuous: courageous outlaws battling an evil governor amidst some of the world’s most gorgeous scenery.

But as narrator Roy grows more and more distraught in real life, his tale gets darker and more disturbing. Characters start dying. Violence mounts.

Finally, young Alexandria teeters on the brink of the tumble referenced in the film’s title: that first trembling fall from innocence.

Lee Pace (”Pushing Daisies,” “Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day”) is likeable here as the stuntman with the wounded heart.

The true standout, however, is Untaru, just 9 when “The Fall” was first released.

Unlike wan starlets like Dakota Fanning, Untaru looks, sounds and acts like a real, live girl. She brings an innocence and a transparency to Alexandria that is hard to fake.

Despite beautiful costumes, stunning sets, and some of the year’s most jaw-dropping cinematography, “The Fall” does have a few flaws.

Like many a fairytale, characters here are only lightly sketched. The plot is simplistic. And the film’s conclusion, seemingly created for younger viewers like Alexandria, is both comforting and confusing.

That said, “The Fall” is truly one of the visual treats of the season. This film deserves to be seen.

***

“The Fall” is currently playing at the Palm Theatre, 817 Palm St. in San Luis Obispo.

You can watch a YouTube interview with actor Lee Pace here.