Fallen (DVD)

"Let me tell you about the time I almost died” is one of the only opening lines of a film that I can remember. This film starts at what turns out to be the end, and we are told the events as they happened through the lead characters eyes. Denzel Washington stars as John Hobbes, a celebrated and decorated homicide detective. Along with his partner Jonesy played by John Goodman, he catches a serial killer called Edgar Reese (Elias Koteas), who plays a pivotal role in the short time he is on screen. They both decide to be present at his trial, and afterwards his execution, mostly I think to make sure that he is finally dead, and Hobbes can ...  Read the complete review

With superb performances, an top-notch script by Nicholas Kazan including novel, fantastic plot devices and developments, a beautifully eerie score by the brilliant modern composer Tan Dun and exquisite direction from Gregory Hoblit, there's little for which one can negatively criticize Fallen. Denzel Washington is John Hobbes, a detective who has finally caught Edgar Reese, a renowned serial killer. Hobbes goes to visit Reese shortly before his execution, and as you might expect from a psycho serial killer, Reese behaves oddly--including gibbering in what he claims is Dutch, but what probably sounds to most of us like speaking in tongues. Actually, ...  Read the complete review

Before I start my opinion proper I feel it only fair to warn you that it may contain some plot details that you would rather not know. Although there is no real hidden twist in ‘Fallen’ as in titles like ‘Sixth Sense’ or ‘Fight Club’ you still might prefer to watch this film with as little knowledge of the storyline as possible. ---------------------------------------- How could you ever hope to catch a killer who has the ability to transfer from one person to another simply by touching them, well that is the task facing Denzil Washington who plays a homicide detective called John Hobbes. After witnessing the ...  Read the complete review

'Fallen' is a good movie - but if I talk about it, I'll give too much away, so trust me, go find it in Blockbuster, and then come back and read the rest of the review once I can't spoil it for you.... Back so soon? Excellent. Now where was I? 'Silence of the Lambs' was a seismic shift in thriller cinema because it allowed a window into another world. Just as 'Hallowe'en' introduced the faceless semi-supernatural psycho, just as 'Psycho' introduced sex to murder, 'Lambs' introduced a heavy emphasis on procedure, a serious concern with character and emotion, and a great measure of ...  Read the complete review

The one interesting point about this movie is it's ability to make you root for Beelzebub. By the end of Fallen I firmly believed that Washington got what he deserved. Such a whiny and self-righteous cop would never have survived this long in reality, and though the basic premise of Fallen is okay, the characterisation is incredibly poor. The Crime/Religion plotline was near perfected in Seven and whether Fallen was attempting to ride of what the producers thought may be an emerging sub-sub-sub-genre I can't be sure. The plotline is clear: serial killer goes to the chair, but not before releasing the evil spirit which has controlled him onto an ...  Read the complete review