Synopsis
Four lost souls—a disgraced TV presenter, a foul-mouthed teen, an isolated single mother, and a solipsistic muso—decide to end their lives on the same night, New Year's Eve. When this disillusioned quartet of strangers meet unintentionally at the same suicide hotspot, a London high-rise with the well-earned nickname Topper's Tower, they mutually agree to call off their plans for six weeks, forming an unconventional, dysfunctional family. They become media sensations as the Topper House Four and search together for the reasons to keep on living.
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Cast
- Pierce BrosnanMartin Sharp
- Aaron PaulJ.J. Maguire
- Imogen PootsJess Crichton
- Toni ColletteMaureen Thompson
- Sam NeillChris Crichton
- Rosamund PikePenny Chambers
- Tuppence MiddletonKathy Miller
- Joe ColeChas Johnson
- Josef AltinMatty Thompson
- Zara WhiteShanay
Recommendations
- 60
The Guardian
A genial, lightweight farce, which largely approximates Hornby's distinctively bittersweet tone. - 40
Empire
Trivialising despair, it’s a depressing waste of a major cast, and an early bid for mess of the year. - 40
Total Film
At best, this is a cringey stab at black comedy redeemed by charismatic stars; at worst it’s a glib and manipulative punt on a subject that deserves more care. - 40
Time Out London
The novel A Long Way Down is not-quite-vintage Nick Hornby. And this is a disappointing film version, a bit hokey and fake. - 40
The Dissolve
The film wavers between the drippy and the glib from start to finish, sometimes within the course of a single scene. - 38
Slant Magazine
An inept trifle, Pascal Chaumeil's film reduces Nick Hornby's novel of the same name to a series of smug self-help gestures. - 25
The Playlist
The film is awful, but it is not unwatchable. - 20
The Hollywood Reporter
The film forms a near-perfect storm of misjudged decisions, with its implausible plot, irritating or outright-dislikeable characters, and strained attempts at “wacky” British humor that fall so flat they’re below sea level.
