Falling Down Movie Review

Falling Down Movie Review

Released in 1993 Falling Down is an edgy and intense film; it has also been considered comedic in a bit of a twisted way and that is why I think some of its popularity still endures.

Directed by Joel Schumacher and starring Michael Douglas as William "D-Fens" Foster. The film starts with D-Fens in a traffic jam on a hot summer day in Los Angeles, a fly buzzes around him annoyingly as you can see him sweat in the unbearable heat. You get the sense he is a very frustrated person, we don't know if it's in the moment or if this is a long term thing. He abandons his care and begins walking with his briefcase.

He enters a convenience store to ask for change and is told by the Korean store clerk that he needs to buy something to get change. He looks around at the price of everything and becomes agitated. You can feel things getting really tense and then he is asked to leave as the store clerk wields a baseball bat. D-Fens takes the baseball and starts asking about prices again, as the clerk says the price D-Fens smashes the product until the clerk reprices it.

He does this until he buys a soda, opening the register himself, placing the money inside and collecting his change in a way that shows the clerk he is not stealing. As he leaves with the baseball bat in hand, it is clear he is fed up, but he didn't attack the clerk so much as smash up his store due to what he perceived as unreasonable pricing.

Not long after he is resting on a hill, he looks through a hole in his worn out shoe before placing a newspaper inside to fill out the hole. He is approached by a couple of gang members who want his wallet. He tries to reason with them, explaining how he understands he is on their turf and will move along. The duo of gang members then try and accost him, taking his briefcase before he comes after them with the bat, taking their knife away and leaving them lying on the ground.

He has several run-ins with people as he is just trying to walk home and not bother anyone but people won't relent so he has no choice but to get more aggressive with people as they confront him. Most of these incidents become almost humorous, despite how serious the situations are. He ends up with a gym bag filled with automatic machine guns as the gang members narrowly miss taking him out in a drive-by shooting. He even gets a bazooka, which a young kid has to teach him how to use.

His attempt to get breakfast is thwarted when he is informed they stopped serving breakfast at 11:30 and the clock shows it's just a few minutes past. He tries again to reason and accidentally ends up firing a few rounds from a submachine into the ceiling, which terrifies the patrons and staff of the restaurant he is in. His attempts to calm people down doesn't seem to work that well but he does change his mind and orders lunch instead.

I love to rewatch this movie every so often, as it is entertaining and does also carry some messages with it about what happens when life pushes people too far. I highly recommend people check out this movie!!