Falling Down

Name: Falling Down
Genre: Drama, Thriller, Crime
Released: February 26, 1993
Duration: 113 min
Rating: 56
Cast: Barbara Hershey, Michael Douglas, Robert Duvall

1993

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 21 Critics

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 391 Ratings

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6.6

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6.6	Your Score
6.6	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 391 Ratings

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FALLING DOWN

Movie Details & Credits

Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: February 26, 1993

Starring: Barbara Hershey, Michael Douglas, Robert Duvall

Summary: A day in the life of a laid-off defense worker, estranged from hiswife and young daughter, and driven beyond frustration in an endless traffic jam. After he abandons his car in the middle of the freeway, he crosses the city on foot, leaving behind him an escalating wake of destruction as his sanity crumbles in the face of contemporaryA day in the life of a laid-off defense worker, estranged from hiswife and young daughter, and driven beyond frustration in an endless traffic jam. After he abandons his car in the middle of the freeway, he crosses the city on foot, leaving behind him an escalating wake of destruction as his sanity crumbles in the face of contemporary urbanreality. (Warner Bros.)… Expand

Director: Joel Schumacher

Genre(s): Drama, Thriller, Crime

Rating: R

Runtime: 113 min

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Awards & Rankings

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

San Francisco Chronicle - Mick LaSalle

A few times every year, Hollywood makes a mistake, violates formula and actually makes a great picture. Falling Down is one of the great mistakes of 1993, a film too good and too original to win any Oscars but one bound to be remembered in years to come as a true and ironic statement about life in our time. [26 Feb 1993, p.D1]

Empire - Philip Thomas

While the morality of D-Fens methods are questionable, there's a resonance about his reaction to everyday annoyances, and Michael Douglas' hypnotic performance makes it memorable. Read full review

Rolling Stone - Peter Travers

Schumacher could have exploited those tabloid headlines about solid citizens going berserk. Instead, the timely, gripping Falling Down puts a human face on a cold statistic and then dares us to look away. Read full review

ReelViews - James Berardinelli

Sure, the viewer who wants to see a tightly-paced thriller with gun-play and emotionally-satisfying moments won't be disappointed, but there is a little more here than simple escapism. Although it takes a number of wrong turns, Falling Down still has the power to disturb. Read full review

Washington Post - Hal Hinson

Douglas again takes on the symbolic mantle of the Zeitgeist. But in Falling Down, he and Schumacher want to have their cake and eat it too; they want him to be a hero and a villain, and it just won't work. Read full review

Seattle Post-Intelligencer - William Arnold

The film probably should have been a comedy. It would be a lot more cathartic - and a lot more entertaining - to laugh at the grim modern world of Falling Down than it is to have a heavy-handed filmmaker rub our faces in the hopelessness of it all. [26 Feb 1993, p.14]

USA Today - Mike Clark

Hopped-up Falling Down is a technically proficient grabber that exploits white-male angst while adeptly juggling two stories filmed in contrasting styles. Slick, maybe facile, and with a nasty streak, it is nonetheless 1993's first consistently engrossing movie. [26 Feb 1993, p.1D]

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User Reviews

Robertstevens

Jul 26, 2018

I’m surprised that this movie has a score of 6.6, I really enjoyed this movie for its great and funny scenes and the slow decent of madness in the main character, also the ending was quite shocking

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

SamiZ.

Jan 19, 2009

Great movie that acts out all the things you've always wanted to do (well, almost all!).

2 of 3 users found this helpful

oblique15

Apr 10, 2013

What is wrong with the critics? They must be the old guys on the golf course scene! This is a Classic movie! I have have watched it over and over and over and over again, this movie never gets old. A whole lot of dark laughs! The character does a lot of things a normal person only wishesWhat is wrong with the critics? They must be the old guys on the golf course scene! This is a Classic movie! I have have watched it over and over and over and over again, this movie never gets old. A whole lot of dark laughs! The character does a lot of things a normal person only wishes they had the guts to do, after putting up with all the crap you face in life.It`s so good I got the DVD today.… Expand

7 of 8 users found this helpful71

IRONK1979

Jan 30, 2018

A great movie that is really effective on bad days where you can live through the Michael Douglas character's eyes.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

kman5473

Oct 19, 2018

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A fairly solid, non-art film about themes that are fairly complex and layered. Foster is a character that is gray; while he is doing things throughout the movie that aren't rational we can't help but empathize to some extent of why he's making the choices that he is making. On the surface, most people today will pry view this as nothing more than enabling white privilege. It's only obvious to me that these individuals did not watch the full movie, nor did the really try to understand what it's about. The big twist at the end is, in fact, Foster realizing he's the bad guy in all this and feeling nothing but remorseful and ashamed for it. This film does not justify Foster, it just depicts it. Whether or not you think Foster is justified says more about you than it does this film. It's a black mirror to look into, but it's necessary and will continue to be relevant and necessary.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

edpoopstuff

Jul 14, 2015

this movie is smart how the film makers did this they make something different and how it deals with some racism and other things, I know the script isnt the best and it wasnt good enough for it to be huge but I thought it was good from all of the messages it had in it also try understandingthis movie is smart how the film makers did this they make something different and how it deals with some racism and other things, I know the script isnt the best and it wasnt good enough for it to be huge but I thought it was good from all of the messages it had in it also try understanding this character how he just goes off and how he thinks also the ending was emotional although the creators of the film did mess up on some of the plot it was still a decent movie in the 1990s unless if someone didnt understand it… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Stephen

Apr 22, 2008

How this film got such a high metacritic score is beyond me. On a superficial level, it's a story of a white male who has seemingly been driven into violence by a corroding American society. Dig a little deeper and you discover the sub-plot of white angst; a theme that gives How this film got such a high metacritic score is beyond me. On a superficial level, it's a story of a white male who has seemingly been driven into violence by a corroding American society. Dig a little deeper and you discover the sub-plot of white angst; a theme that gives justification to the the protagonists misdeeds, using minorities (and their dissolving of American norms and values) as its scapegoat. The director obviously wishes for the viewer to sympathize with his maniacal main character. Unfortunately, unless you believe in Manifest Destiny and the White Man's burden (which I'm afraid a good numbers of Americans do), all you'll see is a shallow movie attempting to make something out of nothing.… Expand

2 of 4 users found this helpful

SEE ALL 21 REVIEWS