On a hot, steaming day in Los Angeles Bill Foster (Michael Douglas) leaves his car in a traffic jam and walks through a violent, scarred city on his way home to find his estranged wife (Barbara Hershey). His attempt to go home finds him confronting an urban landscape devastated by random violence and extreme poverty. Foster, who has believed in the American Dream of wealth, patriotism and dignified labour, finds that only through violence is he able to have his voice heard. The subject of acute controversy when released, “Falling Down” does not slot easily into the vigilante genre. Our identification with Foster is constantly undermined by the accelerating pathology of his behaviour. This film eludes either liberal or conservative readings. What it reflects is a society not on the brink of chaos, but one in which disintegration is the norm. Robert Duvall is the cop on Foster’s trail and there is a frightening, intense cameo by Frederic Forrest as an all-American neo-Nazi.
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How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
305892
Language
English
Audience classification
MA
Subject categories
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Los Angeles (Calif.)
Courtroom, Crime, Espionage & Thrillers
Courtroom, Crime, Espionage & Thrillers → Crime films
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
VHS; Access Print (Section 1)