The Ledge (2011)

A police officer looks to talk down a young man lured by his lover's husband to the ledge of a high rise, where he has one hour to contemplate a fateful decision.

Director:

Matthew Chapman

Writer:

Matthew Chapman

Stars:

Charlie Hunnam, Terrence Howard, Patrick Wilson

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Charlie Hunnam	...	Gavin Nichols
Terrence Howard	...	Det. Hollis Lucetti
Liv Tyler	...	Shana Harris
Patrick Wilson	...	Joe Harris
Jaqueline Fleming	...	Angela Lucetti
Christopher Gorham	...	Chris (as Chris Gorham)
Maxine Greco	...	Consuela
Geraldine Singer	...	Doctor
Dean J. West	...	Frank (as Dean West)
Brianna Dufrene	...	Gail
Jillian Batherson	...	Harper
Tyler Humphrey	...	Jimmy
Mike Pniewski	...	Lt. Markowitz
Katia Gomez	...	Selena

Storyline

A thriller in which a battle of philosophies between a fundamentalist Christian and an atheist escalates into a lethal battle of wills. Ultimately, as a test of faith, or lack of it, the believer forces the non-believer onto the ledge of a tall building. He then has one hour to make a choice between his own life and someone else's. Without faith in an afterlife, will he be capable of such a sacrifice?

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Plot Keywords:

nonlinear timeline | death of daughter | suicide | african american | ball gag | 

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Taglines:

One life. One chance. One step.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality, language and some violent content

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA Germany Saudi Arabia

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 May 2011 (Belarus)

Also Known As:

Au bord du gouffre

Filming Locations:

Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,176, 10 July 2011, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$5,176, 10 July 2011

Company Credits

Production Co:

Foresight Unlimited, VIP Media Group, Michael Mailer Films

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Patrick Wilson starred as Michael Holt in A Gifted Man. In Episode 15, "In Case of Letting Go" Maggie Siff stars as his high school sweetheart. Maggie Siff plays Jackson 'Jax' Teller's wife in Sons of Anarchy, played by Charlie Hunnam.

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Goofs

At 1:12:27 into the movie, as the camera pans to Gavin on the ledge talking to Hollis, the sun is high casting only a partial shadow ton the gray building in the background. The camera then switches to just Hollis looking out of the window, and when it goes back to show Gavin again, the shadow on the gray building behind him covers it almost completely. But the next two times we see Gavin at the same spot the shadow moves back and forth, revealing that the scenes were shot earlier but cut in for the sake of the narrative.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Det. Hollis Lucetti: Yeah, I'm not really sure I even want to do this. But this couple down at the precinct, they've been at me for this for a year now, and I've known them for 15 years, I mean, John and Jane Connelly, they're real good people, but you know, they can't have kids, so he goes, you know, "If I had a child I'd want to be like Hollis", aw shoot, I don't even know why...
Doctor: Mr. Lucetti. Mr. Lucetti.
Det. Hollis Lucetti: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm just so nervous. This ain't my normal routine. You know, in a jar ...
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in Rewind This! (2013)

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Soundtracks

Everything
Written by Nathan Barr and Lisbeth Scott
Performed by Lisbeth Scott

User Reviews

Good, but not the "Atheist Brokeback Mountain."

I think the harsh criticisms of the film are outright ridiculous—along with the excessive accolades. From a basic film critique: The Ledge definitely delivers on maintaining tension/suspense. I think the subtleties here (e.g., Liv Tyler's anti-make-up "make-up") will cause people to feel uncomfortable, but without knowing that it's all intentional.

There is a massive delusion among Christians that fundamentalism and religiously inspired bigotry only manifest in a small percentage of extremists. This just isn't true. If it was, I'd feel dramatically safer and more comfortable in public discussing atheism with a stranger!

The atmosphere is very realistic, and the uncomfortable (at times) dialog is accurate to the reality of proselytism in the guise of philosophical discussion. The movie even captures how many atheists feel when observing prayer, and this is very rare to see in the spot light.

I really wasn't convinced by any of the characters' back-stories. They seemed unnecessarily extreme in a movie that is driven by its subtleties. They really contrasted with the rest of the writing, and broke the illusion of realism. I also didn't find the acting convincing on this level. In particular: Given Shauna's history, she seemed to be unrealistically open and trusting towards Gavin—their interactions felt a bit contrived and very rushed.

Unfortunately the film doesn't explore its topics at much depth, while presenting more rudimentary/common arguments. However, this only added realism to the dialog for me. I feel it has more intellectually to offer symbolically than literally.

The Ledge displays a psychological perspective of an atheist through its atmosphere, and that alone makes it unique and worth seeing.