Falling Down is the best film ever!

JayJohn85

Banned
Its a really good movie. But a long way off being the best ever. The biggest flaw for me is the revelations about D-Fens' character, that he had a history of violent outburst to the extent that he has a court order against contacting his wife & child. It takes away from the idea that this guy could be you or me or anyone on the street.

^Right on bruv! But Hollywood probably ensured that this was put in least we have social disorder! Not best movie but still no common action movie either, has a powerful message. Alienation is dangerous lol.
 
I agree with what people are saying about the 'background information' on D-Fens, you really want to believe that he's a normal guy who's just flipped, but then they have to turn him into an 'incapable, mad loner' character who's alienated his wife and child. Not only that, when they shoehorn in the killing of that neo-Nazi guy in the combat shop, it was basically the makers saying "Look, D-Fens is NOT a racist, our film is NOT racist!!". I mean, let us make our minds up, goddamnit, the element of ambiguity makes it more compelling!

But, yeah, good film, not the best ever, more a 7/10 due to the clumsy way it pans out, it would've been more interesting if they'd played it less safe.
 

Will E Worm

Conspiracy...
One of the best films ever is Gladiator. "Falling Down" doesn't even measure up. :tongue:




The beginning of Gladiator is better than most movies. :hatsoff:
 
In my opinion it is a very great Movie and a kind of a "Tarantino-Movie". Falling Down is from 1993. Ever compared the scene from the military-shop in Falling Down with the scene in the military-shop in Pulp Fiction (1994)? Nobody can tell me that Tarantino was not influenced by Falling Down making this scene!
I think he never mentioned Falling Down, but in my opinion it was defeintely a great influence to him!
 

meesterperfect

Hiliary 2020
Good film, but Duvall's wife could have been left out of it.

yeah i thought the same, or at least she could have been different.
also the nazi guy, he was perfect for the part but i felt it was just an equal oppurtunity thing designed to prevent the film from being called racist.
really, how many extreme nazi/racists do you encounter?
good movie.

i like the message. work your ass off to provide for your family but all that work just turns you into an asshole, because of the stress, the rat race.
then one day its all gone, youre the bad guy while being surrounded by nothing but low life degenerate scum.
 

Lust

Lost at Birth
Good film, but Duvall's wife could have been left out of it.

yeah i thought the same, or at least she could have been different.

she was annoying but i think that was the point. i think a lot of people miss the fact that the film is the development of two different characters. on one hand we see michael douglas fall down and the other hand we see duvall's character rise up. and we see one of the main things he rises up from, a tradgedy previously in his family and how his wife takes it to the extreme. the only reason he is retiring early is to appease her and by the end of the film we see that duvall is no longer the henpecked wuss. i think her role as his wife was very important in that. especially when he stands up to her we the audience are thinking fuck yeah, about damn time. so had she been left out i think we as the audience would have been left out on why duval is retiring and is so sheepish and just not sure of himself.
 

meesterperfect

Hiliary 2020
youre totally right
de-fens lost his family to a divorce, but he still had a choice to have a relationship with his daughter, he just couldnt accept it.
duvall had no choice, he was forced to handle it.
 

Steve-FreeOnes

FO Admin / "rude, unnecessary attitude" (he/they)
Staff member
I must be on my own in not really liking Falling Down, then. I understand the point they were making with it but to me it just seemed like a collection of set pieces linked together with Robert Duvall's boring home life. I like Michael Douglas though - The China Syndrome, The Star Chamber, Coma - all favourites of mine.
 

maildude

Postal Paranoiac
Douglas won the Oscar for Wall Street. He should have won it for this.
 
Douglas won the Oscar for Wall Street. He should have won it for this.

Agreed .. A v Good film & a great script ! A bit of trivia for you, the guy in the traffic jam a the begining who sells " linoleum tiles " was played by Ebbe roe Smith , Who wrote the script to the movie !
 

BCT

Pucker Up Butter Cup.
I loooove that movie, been years since I've seen it but I can relate. There has just been times when life has been too much and we want to snap like that but we can't. Brilliant film!
 

alexpnz

Lord Dipstick
Amazing song too...;)
 
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