Fallen (1998)

As a fan of the passionate acting of Denzel Washington, I recently stumbled upon this film (I was surprised to find a Denzel performance I had not seen yet!) at the local video store. Though Mr. Washington usually enthralls me in his various film efforts, "Fallen" just fell flat and never seemed to get off the ground or lead anywhere.The basic plot involves Washington (playing a cop) being haunted by the spirit of a former inmate whom he sentenced to the death penalty years before. This spirit (which is supposed to be a sort of "devil incarnate") can move from person to person in the slightest of body contact, making it incredibly difficult to track down.As I began watching and the plot unfolded, I kept expecting to see one of two (or, best case scenario, both!) things transpire: First, I wanted to know more about the origins of this devil- spirit. Second, I wanted to really see how the spirit would throw Denzel's character for a loop and make him re-evaluate his faith and priorities in life. Sadly, neither of those tangents were even partially realized.The spirit isn't treated any differently than a real-life murderer in any number of cop dramas, and Washington's character is so "by the book" that his personal life really isn't touched on at all. Also, because of those two deficiencies, Washington is not able to do what (at least I feel) he does best as an actor: emote wildly and with passion. His character in this film is written as much too serious to do such a thing.Thus, upon the film's conclusion, I was left feeling disappointed, with the thought that this film was potentially heading towards something much greater but never really realized that potential. You may better enjoy the movie if you are a fan of strict, by-the-book cop flicks, but otherwise avoid at the risk of feeling let-down.

'Fallen' is one of the more strange, creepy thrillers out there. It is smart, suspenseful and gripping throughout and keeps you guessing until the end. The plot is complex, but not overly complicated to the point where the viewer is struggling to keep up.The highlight of 'Fallen' is obviously Denzel Washington's superb performance as police detective John Hobbes. The movie becomes all about Washington and his character alone is engaging enough to keep the audience interested.'Fallen' isn't an ordinary thriller and is somewhat unique in its approach. The idea is a good one and it was executed well enough.

With a clever central premise and a refreshing lack of any special effects work whatsoever (apart from a nifty 'demon vision' which is used occasionally), FALLEN is a cut above the standard fare of today's American horror films. With a more complex plot than usual (for once, the film doesn't underestimate the intellect of the viewer) and plenty of suspense and nightmarish scenes built up, this will be a refreshing treat for any horror fan.It must be made clear, though, that no matter how clever FALLEN thinks it is, one thing it is not is original. While the theme of the story's hero being implicated in the crimes by the real, supernatural criminal of the piece harks back to CANDYMAN, the real concept of a force which can swap bodies at will actually goes back to the late '80s in the form of such cult classics as THE HIDDEN and SHOCKER. This time around the evil force is more believable though, because there are no rubbery or slimy special effects, the demon is ever invisible. If you will, more is less.One thing I liked about this film is that full use is made of the demon's ability to swap bodies, and many times it escapes just as its about to be caught. Dozens of people get the demon inside them, and there is one great moment where it travels through a queue of people, as one after another they transfer the demon to each other. Another disconcerting moment is when the demon gets inside the police station and one person after another starts singing "time is on my side". Aside from the central killer, the film is very much in the style of SEVEN, in that the settings are gloomy and there is a depressingly downbeat ending. The influence of THE X-FILES is also clear, with impossibly bright torches lighting up dingy surroundings, and Washington could easily be substituted for Mulder.Denzel Washington is well-cast in the role of John Hobbes, a typical everyday sort of detective who displays no psychic powers or anything, he's just a believable, clever guy who uses his wits to catch the demon out. Washington is given able support by three actors and actresses who perform well in their roles and who all come out looking good. Firstly there is John Goodman, looking very much older these days, who plays his typical mild-mannered friendly person. Donald Sutherland is also on hand to lend distinguished and solid support, and it's always great to see Sutherland in a film. Whatever critics might say, he's a good guy. Embeth Davidtz (ARMY OF DARKNESS) plays the female lead who is unsurprisingly underused, but for once she plays a well-drawn out, realistic female character in a horror film.Fallen deserves kudos for being a little bit more intelligent than the more typical blockbusters filling out the horror shelves these days. There are plenty of twists for the mystery fan to enjoy, and a gripping finale, which, like ARLINGTON ROAD, doesn't succumb to the sappy sentimental ending so beloved of most of these films. I can only praise it for the lack of special effects which, like THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT showed, don't necessarily make a good film.

Detective John Hobbes attends the execution of serial killer Edgar Reese. They have a private chat where Reese gives him a riddle of sorts and then speaks in a strange language. The riddle leads him to a once decorated officer who went to his cottage in the woods and killed himself. It was never explained why but when Hobbes looks around the cottage, he finds the name Azazel on the wall. Hobbes soon learns that Azazel is an evil spirit who can transfer itself from one person to another through touch. As Hobbes comes to realise the extent Azazel is responsible for much of the evil around him he also realises that Azazel is after him.......If you remember the Lou Diamond Phillips movie from 1990 The First Power, you will realise that this is nothing more than a remake of that movie, albeit with a higher calibre of acting on show, and all the camp jokes taken away in favour of straight up thrills.Washington is the Everyman police officer, and this was the point in his career when he was still having fun in his career, starring in more low budget B-movie fodder like this and Virtuoisty, rather than being more choosy like he has been in the last fifteen years (2 guns aside).And it's pretty good stuff, quite creepy in places, and there is one scene where Davidtz is being chased down the street by the Demon, but it looks more like an extreme game of tick/freeze-tag.There are a few questions that are unanswered that really irk the viewer, I really wish the his brothers character was fleshed out more, and the ending doesn't really make sense, why didn't he let him bleed slowly to death and run off?It's not a bad film though.