mdtinney's Movie Review of Fallen (1998)

Time is on my side... Yes it is!!
mdtinney - wrote on 08/10/09

It's a shame that Fallen is not more well known because it is a powerful and suspenseful film that boasts a fine cast and original story. Denzel Washington is one of the finest actors of our time and pulls of a great performance as Det. Hobbs. John Goodman, Donald Sutherland, and Elias Koteas also turn in wonderful performances. With a tense pace that keeps you guessing and keeps things moving along, Fallen is not your typical suspense thriller. With it's religious and metaphysical overtones, it really brings an original angle into this tired genre. With an unusual soundtrack laying down a weird vibe, this is a film that you should look into if you haven't seen it already. The script of this film is fantastic. It begins in the classic 3 act structure whereby act 1 introduces you to the story. We start off with Denzel running in the snow and his internal thoughts being translated to us through voice over. He carefully states that he is in a near death experience, but because of the style of the genre that we have become used to, we assume that Denzel is going to die. Act 2 takes us back into the life of Denzel prior to the moment when we engage with him at the beginning of the film. He works alongside his colleague, John Goodman, in a police station, and they are both eventually possessed by an evil spirit, or more rightly termed, a fallen angel. John Goodman becomes the antagonist possessed with the fallen angel, out to take possession of Denzel. Denzel is forced to impose a slow death on Goodman in the middle of nowhere, and takes a lethal nicotine injection so that when the spirit leaves Goodman and enters inside of him, he is already dead, thus putting an end to the travels of the fallen angel. Once the spirit realises this and enters inside of Denzel, we see Denzel running in the snow as at the beginning of the film. Then, Act 3 kicks in. We still have in our minds that Denzel is about to die. And he does. But the internalisations that we hear are not the words of Denzel, but the fallen angel. The fallen angel manages to live on beyond Denzel's death by entering inside a white wolf, thereby double crossing the audience through the use of drama synchronised with a familiar voice. A very clever piece of writing. Bottom Line: A great film that's sadly not as well known as it should be. It's in my collection and I suggest that you add it to yours.