Project-Blu ‘Falling Down’ Review, by Nate Boss

Falling Down

By: Nate Boss, 5.23.2009

The Movie Itself:
 Mental stability. Some folks have it, and some don't. It can be something that was never there throughout an entire lifetime, it can disappear during substance abuse, or it can completely break down due to insurmountable stress or pressure, or the constant feeling of everything going wrong. We Americans seem to be lacking this vital bit of civility. We have a term for when mail carriers go berserk and shoot up their facility (going postal), that borderline glamorizes the horrible action of mass murder. We have TV shows that glorify the action, recreating the events that led to someone going ballistic, and damn near yearly school or work slaughters. Hell, just recently in my hometown, a paraplegic man got loaded on PCP and ate his 4 year old son's eyeballs, then rolled outside and started hacking at his legs with an axe. Drugs or no, you tell me that he was stable.

With such mainstream exposure of going coocoo bananas publicly, you know there has to be a film out there that portrays the act of just going balls to the walls insane, hell there are plenty. One film of this nature stands out, sheerly due to the way it shows the descent of what seems like an ordinary man. A working class white male, whose personal issues pile up until one day he can't take it anymore. Joel Schumacher (also known as the man who ruined the Batman franchise in the '90's) crafted the very honest look at this process, with standout actor Michael Douglas portraying the man who loses it, in Falling Down.

William Foster (Douglas) is on the edge. His life is in shambles (much like many in these rough times). Nothing is going right...far from it, in fact. He is a powder keg waiting to explode, and a simple traffic jam is what sets his very short fuse off. Abandoning his vehicle (with the custom plate D-FENS), Foster stops letting the little things get to him. Rather, he sets out to get to those little things, and try to fix them. Foster's instability leads to numerous run-ins with those he meets on his journey on foot, who he feels have wronged him in some way, intentionally or accidentally. He isn't going to take any wrongdoing laying down anymore, the camels back has been broken.

While Foster goes on his white collar rampage, a retiring detective, Martin Prendergast (Robert Duvall), seems to see a pattern to the random police reports that are piling in on his last day. These men have something in common with each other, but have taken different paths (or, rather, have had different paths forced on them), and will end up colliding with each other, in a tale of order vs mayhem.

Foster isn't named immediately in the film, far from it in fact. Falling Down does its best to make him an every man, someone who could be anyone, due to the nature of his role, how it can be anyone, any time, who can't "take it" anymore. This is similar to the lack of a name for the "Pointy Haired Boss" (PHB) in the Dilbert comic strips, or the fact that the city in which Fight Club takes place is not named, so that they can be construed as anyone/anywhere situations.

As said in the synopsis, there is a distinct familiarity between Prendergast and Foster. Both have a tragic loss of a child in their past, one due to a death, the other, due to a divorce, with a restraining order. Prendergast seems disassociated to the event, that seems to have altered his marriage greatly, to the point that he is borderline neutered, while Foster has let the loss of his child, due to his wife and her fear of him, be one of the many catalysts of his rampage, and the focus of his misguided journey. These two men are very similar, especially as they are both unhappy with their current situations, but how they handle it is what sets them apart. Hell, a broken car a/c is one of the reasons a man snaps, something I doubt that would drive a detective to eventually murder. I suppose it is ironic, though, that the car can't help Foster keep his cool, so he loses his cool.

Falling Down, in my opinion, is shown through the eyes of Foster/D-FENS. The path less taken, the one that Foster does take, is littered with numerous stereotyped individuals. The Korean convenience store owner who charges too much. The latino gang bangers, who threaten people "in their territory," who turn to violence at any sign of provocation. The beggars on the street at the bus stop, who are all latino or black. That isn't to say that white people aren't also given a poor look, as the park bum is shown as a pathological, threatening liar, while the surplus store owner, who is a Nazi enthusiast, isn't exactly someone to be looked up to. These minor characters are very important, as they represent the wrongdoings that Foster is fighting against. These individuals are all represented by their most derogatory stereotypes, from speech patterns, clothing, even how they use their weapons. Corporate America is also critiqued. Foster's fast food rant is a very telling scene, that has a wonderful undertone, that is often misrepresented over someone pissed off he can't get a breakfast sandwich, rather than someone rebelling over the policies that are misleading and beyond unfriendly to consumers. The construction workers represent the bold faced lies told for sake of appearance.

Falling Down also portrays the escalation of violence, and severe cause and effect. Foster is always bringing a lesser weapon to a fight (much like the famous Looney Tunes sequences where Bugs and Daffy each grab bigger weapons, to the point they're bigger than the Earth itself). He brings his fists to a bat fight. A bat to a knife fight. And a knife to a gun fight. The way those around him react make him go further off the deep end, and actually enable the carnage that ensues. It makes Foster emotionless to the suffering of those around him, as he doesn't even care about those who were shot in a drive by, or if there were any men in a car that got smashed by the fleeing gang.

Is Foster a racist? I could debate that for days, especially with my view that the film is told through his eyes. Is Foster a nut? That's a debate I doubt will have many people arguing against me when I say yes, yes he is. Falling Down may not convince many that such events could happen, as many will just see the film as overreactions to minor things, but the point is, it's the fact that these moments are always there, always weighing on the back of someone, to the point that they may lose it, and exponentially escalate an issue's relevance unintentionally. As such, Falling Down is a successful critical piece, that can be interpreted from many angles. As such, one could watch it with a different theory from the onset, and see a new movie every time.
Rating: 7/10

The Presentation:
Presented in a VC-1 encode, the Blu-ray for Falling Down does a nice job of presenting the "no frills" vision of the film. The entire film is drab, with muted colors, an obvious ode to the fact that the crew weren't trying to make a sensationalistic film, rather portray the film, extreme as it may be, in a more realistic fashion. In other words, don't expect reds or greens to pop, as this is one film they shouldn't.

The skin tones in the film were for the most part very accurate and realistic, though a few times felt a bit hot, just like D-FENS' temper. The source is clean, with a very rare dirt speck showing up here and there, while a very light grain level brings the film to life. The film has some solid detail level, as well, with some great close ups, though it is a bit random, as there are some prolonged softer, fuzzy shots that lack any real definition. The picture is also not very deep, as it doesn't feel three dimensional, but that may be chalked up to the age of the film (funny how fast time flies, isn't it?). Fans of the film will notice a nice upgrade in this release that justifies the upgrade from their DVD editions.

The audio mix for Falling Down has been a point of contention to some. You know the ones, who think all films should have no grain, should all look like they're filmed yesterday. The same ones who think that a film like Meet Joe Black should sound like The Incredible Hulk or The Dark Knight. In other words, modernists. Film purists won't mind one bit that Falling Down is presented in a Dolby TrueHD Stereo mix, and I know I certainly had no objections to such. That said, the sound for this release isn't very engaging, but that's not the fault of the Stereo; rather, it's the fault of the film itself.

There is a bit of random ambiance in the film, as it takes place on the streets, so pedestrians, passing cars, and other city effects pop up from time to time, though they are a bit subdued in the mix. Dialogue is put to the front, and it is very clear, with nary a moment that had to be replayed for comprehension sake. The film sounds a bit much like something you'd hear on TV on a Saturday afternoon, with most sounds stuck in the middle range, with neutered gunshots, and no real spike in volume at any point. I was honestly more than happy with the bass levels for the film, too, as they are presented quite nicely for a Stereo mix, though they are only present a few times in the film. One bit of sound design bugged the hell out of me, in the loft of the surplus store, where a bug zapper emits a high pitched feedback sound that was grating after a few seconds, but stayed in the mix due to being on screen. All in all, this audio mix does the job, but it isn't anything particularly impressive.
Rating: 6/10 ( 8/10- video, 5/10- audio)

The Extras:
Digibook
Falling Down comes in one of Warner's Digibook packages, complete with essays, pictures, and biographies. Also worth note, while we're on the topic of packaging: thank goodness for the new cover art!

Audio Commentary
With Michael Douglas and Joel Schumacher.

Deconstructing D-FENS: A Conversation with Michael Douglas (SD, 10 min)
Somewhat of a retrospective by Douglas, as this feature was filmed long after the movie was made (he sure has gone gray!). He discusses the controversies and problems shopping the film. He has an interesting take on D-FENS, where his point of no return is (far later than what I'd say it was), and his analysis of the intentions of D-FENS. A fast moving extra.

Theatrical Trailer (SD)
The theatrical trailer for the film.
Rating: 4/10

Overall:
I can't imagine Falling Down is a film that is universally loved. I can see people hating it. Honestly, the first time I saw it, I thought it was cheesy, and pretty awful. But over the years, the film grew on me, and I began to realize it was almost a masterpiece, still flawed in some ways, but a very important film. The video qualities for this release are solid, while the audio will puzzle some, and the extras package is somewhat short. Fans of the film should pick this up no matter what, and for those who have never sat down to the film, I hope you have a good excuse, as Falling Down is a film everyone should see at least once.
Rating: 6/10