Falling Down

Dir: Joel Schumacher

1993

*****

Falling Down is now considered a classic of the thriller genre, a unique action film that dealt with many social issues, brought to us by Joel Schumacher of all people. Schumacher’s career is a strange one, with classics like The Lost Boys, questionable adaptations such as The Phantom of the Opera and absolute stinkers like Batman & Robin. However, writer Ebbe Roe Smith’s career is perhaps stranger, with loads of odd-ball extra credits under his belt but only two features written by him; the brilliant Falling Down and the epically awful Car 54, Where Are You? which is standing proud as one of the worst 100 films ever made on IMDB. Two film makers with varying success but together they made a very modern classic. There are many elements to Falling Down; a man buckling under the pressure of modern life; sardonic observations on life, poverty, the economy, and commercialism in down-town Los Angeles and a retiring Sergeant given a difficult choice on the last day of his career. The opening scene, a direct homage to Federico Fellini's famous opening to 8½, is now an iconic classic. The brilliant Michael Douglas (in his own personal favorite performance) plays William Foster (known as D-FENS for most of the movie) sits in LA traffic during the heat of rush hour. The noise of the car horns, the sweltering temperature and the attitude of his fellow drivers take effect and when fact his air conditioning fails he snaps. He abandons his car and begins walking across Los Angeles to attend his daughter’s birthday party. His journey becomes a symbolic one as he walks past (through) many examples of modern day life at the core of debate at the time (The LA riots were happening at the time and there was much social disruption). At a convenience store, the Korean owner refuses to give change for a telephone call. Foster begins ranting about the high prices. The owner grabs a baseball bat and demands Foster leave. Foster takes the bat and destroys much of the merchandise before paying for a soda and leaving. Shortly thereafter, while resting on a hill, he is accosted by two gang members who threaten him with a knife and demand his briefcase. Foster attacks them with the bat and picks up the knife when they flee. The two gang members, now in a car with friends, cruise the streets and find Foster in a phone booth. They open fire, hitting several bystanders but not Foster. The driver loses control and crashes. Foster picks up a gun, shoots the one surviving gang member in the leg, and then leaves with their bag of weapons. Foster encounters a panhandler at a park and gives him the briefcase, which only contains his lunch. At a fast food restaurant, Foster attempts to order breakfast, but they have switched to the lunch menu. After an argument with the manager, Foster pulls a gun and accidentally fires into the ceiling. After trying to reassure the frightened employees and customers he won't hurt anyone, he orders lunch, but is annoyed when the burger looks nothing like the one shown on the menu. He leaves, tries to call Beth from a phone booth, then shoots the booth to pieces after being hassled by someone who was waiting to use the phone. We then switch to Sergeant Prendergast (played by Robert Duvall), who is on his last day before retirement, but insists on investigating the crimes of the day and not going home early. Interviews with the witnesses at each scene lead Prendergast to realize that the same person may be responsible. Foster's “D-FENS” vanity license plate proves to be an important lead, because Prendergast remembers being in the same traffic jam as Foster earlier that day. Prendergast and his partner, Detective Torres, visit Foster's mother, who is surprised to learn that Foster lost his job. They realize Foster is heading toward his former family's home in Venice, Los Angeles and rush to intercept him. Foster then passes a bank where a black man is protesting being rejected for a loan application. The man exchanges a glance with Foster and says "don't forget me" as he is escorted away by police. Foster stops at a military surplus store to buy a new pair of shoes. The owner, a white supremacist, diverts Torres’ attention when she comes in to ask questions. After she leaves, he offers Foster a rocket launcher, and congratulates him for shooting "a bunch of niggers" at the Whammy Burger. When Foster expresses distaste for the store owner's racism, the man pulls a gun, tells him he is "going to jail" and attempts to handcuff him, but Foster stabs him with the gang member's knife, then shoots him. He changes into army fatigues and boots, takes the rocket launcher, and leaves. Foster calls Beth from another payphone, and tells her that he is "coming home", in violation of his restraining order. Alarmed by his rambling speech and menacing manner, Beth calls the police; they send a pair of officers to her home, but they do not believe that Foster really intends to harm her, and therefore only stay for a short time. Foster encounters a road repair crew, who are not working, and accuses them of doing unnecessary repairs to justify their budget. He pulls out the rocket launcher, but struggles to use it, until a young boy explains how it works. Foster accidentally fires the launcher, blowing up the construction site. Foster calls Beth and tells her that he is close to her home. Terrified, she flees with their daughter Adele. When Foster reaches the empty house, he realizes that they may have gone to nearby Venice Pier, but Prendergast and Torres arrive before he can go after them. Foster shoots and wounds Torres and flees, with Prendergast in pursuit. At the end of the pier, Foster confronts Beth and Adele. Adele is happy to see him, but Beth believes that he has come to kill them. Prendergast arrives and intervenes. He acknowledges Foster's complaints about being ill-treated by society, but does not accept that as an excuse for his rampage. Distracting Foster, Beth kicks the gun away as Prendergast draws his revolver, insisting that Foster give himself up. Foster pulls a water gun, forcing Prendergast to shoot him dead. While I’ve always hated the ending, it does raise the question ‘Where do we go from here? Albeit without giving an answer. William Foster isn’t a hero, he is most certainly the villain but also the victim. I think there are problems with how the supporting characters are portrayed but on the whole the message comes across – modern life can be crippling, we might feel like flipping out but we only loose when we do. While the film is too simplistic to make real sociological comment, it does also explore an issue in a simplistic way that is universally understood. It is important to read between the lines. It is a neo-conservative film and an anti neo-conservative film at the same time. It’s the balance and the contradiction that make the story authentic in my opinion. It tells a story and explores a situation so that everyone can understand, in some cases its truer to life than most of us would care to admit. It is timeless in what it is trying to convey but very much of its time and a historical piece that stands as a great example of culture in the early 90s. Full of faults but a modern masterpiece all the same, the fact that it still divides opinion says a lot about its effect.