by Paul Costello
Falling Down is a film about a man being pushed too far. And like all those who have finally reached the limit of the amount of crap they are willing or able to take, the (anti-)hero of Falling Down has decided to push back. Known predominantly only as “D-FENS”, Michael Douglas plays a straight-laced white-collar man who decides to just leave his car in the middle of traffic and walk home. However, his journey becomes one marked by the kind of destruction and fear that could only be inflicted by the hyper-repressed, fed up with the society he’s been so concerned about maintaining.
Falling Down is a film about a man being pushed too far. And like all those who have finally reached the limit of the amount of crap they are willing or able to take, the (anti-)hero of Falling Down has decided to push back. Known predominantly only as “D-FENS”, Michael Douglas plays a straight-laced white-collar man who decides to just leave his car in the middle of traffic and walk home. However, his journey becomes one marked by the kind of destruction and fear that could only be inflicted by the hyper-repressed, fed up with the society he’s been so concerned about maintaining.
Michael Douglas is an actor who has some solid moments of monologue-giving and speech-making, and over the course of this ongoing series we’ll hit upon a few of them. However, whilst the others may fire with the unapologetic avarice of Oliver Stone or the stirring nobility of Aaron Sorkin, this is where I’d put my vote for Michael Douglas’s finest career performance. And this moment is part of the reason for that.
Okay, I may be cheating a little bit with this one, given that I’m effectively pointing at two moments from a single brief scene, but it’s deserved attention. The gradual shift in audience perception of D-FENS from vigilante standing up against the system to a slowly devolving psychotic is handled superbly by Douglas, and this scene is one that captures much of the maelstrom inside him. Here, we see the tragedy of his station, the simplicity of his desire, the futility of his efforts, and the disturbing implication of his closing words. It’s sad, it’s chilling, it’s all so unnervingly relatable.
Setting the scene: D-FENS’s rampage of indignation has long since taken a dark turn. Being hunted for a growing series of crimes, which we know includes murder, assault, theft and mass destruction, he tries to hide out in the garden of a large house. Climbing the fence to get in, he cuts his hand, and looks like he wants to take it out on the family enjoying a barbecue…
Okay, I may be cheating a little bit with this one, given that I’m effectively pointing at two moments from a single brief scene, but it’s deserved attention. The gradual shift in audience perception of D-FENS from vigilante standing up against the system to a slowly devolving psychotic is handled superbly by Douglas, and this scene is one that captures much of the maelstrom inside him. Here, we see the tragedy of his station, the simplicity of his desire, the futility of his efforts, and the disturbing implication of his closing words. It’s sad, it’s chilling, it’s all so unnervingly relatable.
Setting the scene: D-FENS’s rampage of indignation has long since taken a dark turn. Being hunted for a growing series of crimes, which we know includes murder, assault, theft and mass destruction, he tries to hide out in the garden of a large house. Climbing the fence to get in, he cuts his hand, and looks like he wants to take it out on the family enjoying a barbecue…
Follow Paul on Twitter!
RSS Feed
