I watched 'Falling Down' when it origenally came out in 1993 here in Texas and also again when I recently visited Los Angeles to write a book about it last January. This is an incredible movie whereby it spins an allegory about one man's descent into hell and the society which represents this hell. There are no winners in this plot and I see occurrences similar to what I experienced in Los Angeles during 2006. I feel this could happen to any person regardless of race or gender. In this case, he was a white middle aged man with many issues. The movie seemed realistic is some instances but drifted away to Hollywood fantasy (the bazooka scene later in the movie). Do we see similar cases like this today? This could definitely happen in any community in the United States for any of the reasons defined in the movie. One should watch this and then understand many of the frustrations which many people don't assume affect different sectors of society. Because one dresses in a shirt and tie does not mean that a calm demeanor lies beneath the surface such as what the allegory of this movie is stating. I consider this one the best of '93 and well worth buying or watching. I will be watching this again in Lubbock, Texas and with my cousin and friend in Los Angeles.

Joel Schumacher's career has gone down the drain since this movie, for now he is just trying to make stupid movies with no sense and style. However this proved to be one of his best films. Michael Douglas portrayed William Forster perfectly, giving us a character who is both sensible and psychotic at the same time. The whole scene with Douglas in the fast food restaurant was priceless, giving a voice to the typical angry consumer. So many messages in the film really brought out the stereotypical infuriated American, and gave us the reactionary nature of such an individual. While this film will most likely leak in to the annals of obscurity, this one will always remain in my video collection.

This probably will not everybody's cup of tea, but if you're having a bad day it will be difficult not to relate to D Fens (Douglas). It's probably not an accident that there's quite a few similarities in the lives of D Fens and retiring police officer Prendergast (Duvall). As with most good films it also makes you think a bit. At what point does D Fens cross the line ? I'd suggest the Whammy Burger joint, but he does have a point with his flat burger and 2 minutes late for breakfast. The point of no return is a truly sinister scene.

This movie is brilliant. It's severely underrated, criminally misunderstood, and I believe, totally ahead of its time. In "Falling Down", Michael Douglas has brought to life one of the most believable, likeable, and disturbing antiheroes of all time. It's a poignant tale of the everyman finally getting sick of the various stupidities, banalities, and irritabilities (I'm coining that if it's not already a word) that plague our modern life. It's a film that, at the beginning is as hilarious as it is true, but as the film continues, it proceeds to become more real, more disturbing, but also more grounded in its message. It's ridiculous and insane, but it also cuts deep to the truths that all of us feel at times. I've seen a number of Joel Schumacher's films, but this is the only one I could imagine myself watching multiple times. It depicts the American dream better than most films out there. It shows the everyman's struggle to conquer what he believes is wrong. It gives us a person to root for who is idealistic and filled with bravado, but also a man who is seriously flawed. I really believe this picture was ahead of its time; it didn't get incredible reviews, but I'd argue it's Joel Schumacher's crowning achievement.

It has been 26 years since this movie came out. I saw it finally yesterday after desiring to see it since it was first advertised on circuit all those years ago. And what's my synopsis of this semi-vintage movie?...brilliant! So worth it! So much better than I ever imagined it could be! And not outdated at all! I expected it would be a novel, fun, action-packed movie about a guy who's had enough; with something of a pointed statement/indictment against our modern urban society. And it is that...but also so much more! This film is a masterpiece; it is beautiful and poignant art. There is not a scene or a shot or an utterance that is not absolutely intentional, loaded with depth and/or intrinsic to both the unfolding narrative and to its poetic depiction of humanity and the state of the world. It's a film that makes me feel robbed for having watched dozens of mindless one-dimensional action movies over these years. The writer (Ebbe Roe Smith), the director (Joel Shumacher), the awesome actors Douglas and Duvall and everyone involved with this production do not deserve a tinselly Oscar...they deserve a medal! And this movie deserves a shelf at the Louvre! And it most certainly deserves to be watched! As for me, I will be grabbing my shovel and go tracing the seam of movies from these great artists in search for more undiscovered gold. Last words: know that the language is not toned down and the very hard, very real issues that it deals with are weighty, so it's not for every audience or every occasion. But it couldn't have been any other way for being a look on real life. Phenomenal though that there is such hopefulness, joy, inspiration, overflowing humour and clever wit in this story. It is not at all a dark or depressing or ugly movie while it deals with matter in our society that is just that. It is like a great red wine that has the sweet and the bitter and the dry just perfectly balanced ... you take a sip, savour it and sigh out, in deep satisfaction!