When Eye Candy Isn’t Enough: Two films struggle at the Box Office
Dustin Chase
Two weeks ago, Luca Guadagnino‘s tension-filled, foreplay flick Challengers opened to dismal numbers at the box office. Despite razor-sharp promotion and Zendaya (Dune) leading a trifecta of sexiness, it didn’t land as the studio hoped. The same thing happened last week with the romantic action comedy The Fall Guy, starring another beautiful cast: Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Both films, with their unique blend of genres and bold original ideas, offer a refreshing take on the usual movie fare. However, despite their innovative approaches, audiences don’t seem interested, so what gives?
Call Me By Your Name director Luca Guadagnino, known for his artistic visions and thought-provoking films, steps into the commercial realm with Challengers. The film, set in the competitive world of tennis, is a puzzle that requires the audience to carefully hold on to phrases and moves and debate who is serving who. It’s a brilliant film, with Zendaya delivering her best work on the big screen. The chemistry between Mike Faist (West Side Story) and Josh O’Connor (The Crown) may not match that of Ryan Gosling, but their dueling chemistry and flirty innuendo are Guadagnino’s specialty.
You get your money’s worth of Ryan Gosling in The Fall Guy. Equally as ripped and pumped as he was in Barbie, this is the confident, scruffy, blond-highlighted guy Ken could never be. Gosling has achieved this rare status where both women and men idolize him; “sexy bacon” is the term used in the film. It’s not all about his physique, which gets lots of close-ups, but rather how cool he seems, both on-screen and off. Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer) might not be running around showing her body in The Fall Guy, but equally blonde and bronzed, she exudes her own appeal. Then there’s Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nocturnal Animals), who is goofier than ever in his McConaughey-esque character.
The Fall Guy is the ultimate popcorn film, positioned right before the summer box office truly begins. It’s action-packed, a love letter to Hollywood stunt performers, with romance and hilarity. Did I mention Taylor-Johnson does a spot-on imitation of Matthew McConaughey’s accent? Yet it nearly flopped at the box office last week. On the one hand, just because audiences don’t run out and buy a ticket on opening weekend doesn’t mean they are not interested. Some of us will see it when we have time. Both films are likely to benefit from good word of mouth.
Challengers is sparking people’s curiosity because it’s a bit of a mystery what those three are doing when they are off the tennis court. It’s also a hard film to explain; the cast has been explicit in interviews that there is no on-screen sex; it’s all foreplay. With The Fall Guy, it’s obvious what you are getting: beautiful Hollywood stars delivering a checklist of stunts and genre tropes that just happened to be fun and perhaps in need of some tighter editing.
Both films are worth your time and are likely to fare way better by the end of the summer after we get sequeled to death.