Falling Down is the epitome of a quote that The Joker, Batman’s classic archvillain, made famous. “Just one bad day. That’s all it takes for someone to be where I am. Just one bad day…” William Foster, played magnificently by Michael Douglas, has exactly that. One bad day that just gets worse and worse. And the great thing about it is, you don’t even know how bad his day really is until it gets further along in the movie. Yeah, it seems bad in the beginning. But just wait. You’ll be surprised.
And Robert Duvall, who’s always been a great actor in my opinion anyway, plays a great retiring cop. Grizzled old man, putting the case together, picking up clues along the way when nobody would believe him. He played the part perfectly. Especially at the end, in the final scene. The only scene in the movie that him and Michael Douglas shared in the entire film.
But it’s amazing how much of this movie holds up to this day. I don’t want to spoil it and go through the entire list, but his rage and mental breakdown was aimed at society’s ills. Not a whole lot has changed in the last 30 years. You could probably remake this movie today, updated for the current times, and it would be as relevant now as it was in 1993.
And that’s what made this movie so popular and turned it into the cult classic that it is. People saw themselves in the character. People could see themselves hitting that breaking point. Going past the point of no return and having that one bad day that pushed you over the edge like Bill Foster. It’s a lot different in real life. The consequences are a lot more dire. But you find the respite in the movie. So, you try to identify with poor old Bill.
So, yeah. Go and see Falling Down. It didn’t win any awards officially. But there’s some award worthy acting in the film in my opinion. It’s a well written story, on top of a great plot. With some memorable quotes and scenes that are worthy of knowing if you’re a fan of movies, just in general. (D-FENS!) And as always, keep on watching, with a smile on your face…
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