Commentaires des utilisateurs

There's a lot to commend here. The film is carefully structured, full of interesting detail while never losing sight of the story it wants to tell. On the surface it is a family tale, but underneath it is a drama of conflicting values, of care versus cruelty.

Viggo Mortensen the writer has a less steady hand than Viggo Mortensen the director. He has created an austere father figure who lacks the three-dimensionality of the carers he comes into conflict with. In spite of a towering, theatrical performance by Lance Henriksen, there is a feeling of something missing. It may be we just don't have enough back-story: how did this guy get this way? There's only a single line that might give a clue. It's not enough. However, the character's younger self is given a wider range of emotion to play, which Sverrir Gudnason siezes, runs with and scores triumphantly.

The female roles, though in a couple of cases rather sketchy in terms of what they say, are all superbly played, directed lovingly so that the camera fills in the gaps left by the absence of spoken words. This is particularly true of Hannah Gross's sensitive turn as Gwen.

Mortensen turns out to be a very good director of children. The young actors in the cast all give excellent performances.

Of Mortensen the actor there's only praise to give. It's been a joy watching him develop over these many years since his film debut in WITNESS. He's as compelling and believable as ever, never more so than in his tender relationship here with Terry Chen.

Well done, Viggo. Here's to the next one.

This film which should (I hate that word) be smooth and quiet, is exhausting. It's a train wreck with bodies being tossed aside one and two at a time by a vile old man who was even worse young one - and you cannot stop watching. Until he isn't. Or is he? If anyone has had a destructive personality (or two) in their life knows how true to life this film is. And how exhausting these people are. You want to love them, but ... While this film is difficult to watch, it is well worth it. Think what the actors had to go through to make this for us.

I watched an interview with Viggo and Mr Henriksen few weeks back talking about the making of the Film and what inspired him to write the Story. Now that I have watched the Movie twice, I get it. The reality of Dementia and Old Age is tough to swallow but the Film sets the Tone from the First scene. All the Flashbacks to the Past and still shots of Art and Beautiful scenery make it a kinda trippy ride. Since the story was loosely based on his own Family and personal experiences growing up Viggo was all in and it shows in his directing and acting in the Movie. The clash of characters and Nice Soundtrack make for a Fun watch. Sailors Language thru out. Lance Henriksen is the Man !

The performances are good, well-directed, and believable. Mr. Henriksen was terrific. I hope to see Viggo directing more projects in the future.

Viggo, perhaps one of the most underrated actors of the past few decades gives a heartbreaking performance. He also steps behind the camera, flexing his directing chops to guide this film. At times hard to watch, Falling manages to use flashback with a uniqueness not quite seen. He pulls the onion back just enough to keep your attention, using colors, landscapes and sound design to make the viewer reflect inwards. It misses the mark in the casting department for me, as Lance Henirckson at times is so offensive you lose all compassion for a man that has truly lost his ability to connect his mind with his words. That being said, there is comfort in the likes of Moretnesen and Linney as they suffer through his gut wrenching diatribes, their sadness shines through. Slow paced and purposeful, Falling is a must see for anyone who has a family member battling dementia, or an insufferable parent.

Lance Hendrickson is great if you want someone who is pissed off, depressed and has almost full blown Alzheimer's. Very sad and true to life character study. He also hates his son is gay.

Henriksen is just too annoying... He's completely unlikeable and the movie gets to the point where you're just sick of watching him being a total as.... You can't even blame it on his dementia, it's the character he plays, from the very begging, just nasty, evil person. Makes you wonder, how could those grown up kids of his still call him daddy. How much empathy do they have and where is it coming from? On one hand I admire them and on the other I cannot believe how they both turned out.

I love Viggo Mortensen, Laura Linney, and have even been a fan of Lance Henriksen. Henriksen gave a great performance in this movie. But the movie itself is wildly uneven in tone and structure. I really wanted to like it more than I did.

The elderly father was a vile human being. But that's not what bothered me about the movie, although the character seemed to be written a little over the top (how would any member of his family ever manage to stand by him?). There were so many aspects of this movie that didn't gel, as far as the tone. It just seemed fake. And Mortenson's portrayal of a gay man seemed very mannered and self-conscious.

It was a nice try as a first time directors effort for Mortensen. Maybe you'll do better next time.

Viggo Mortensen has long held my respect as an actor, and has now gained it as a director, writer (and music composer) too. Falling is a tough film to watch, but one worth watching regardless. Lance Henriksen, now in his eighties, is better than ever, and I'm glad Viggo has given him a role worthy of his talent and acting range.

The role of the father is slightly overdone in his harshness, which makes the situation - hopefully - not very relatable, but that aside, Falling is a masterful directorial debut for Viggo Mortensen, and hopefully the first of many.

This was a hard one. I'm a Viggo Mortensen fan (History Of Violence, Appaloosa, Captain Fantastic, Eastern Promises) but this just became painful after an hour. Found myself begging for someone to just smother the Lance Hendrickson character with a pillow, until finally it all just seemed pointless and I began to lose interest altogether. It's okay to have a despicable character, but eventually this became relentless to the point of needless aggravation, and me being thankful I wasn't watching it in a theatre. And I mean, the kid sleeping with a dead duck? C'mon . . .

A much better movie with a similar theme is "Affliction", with Nick Nolte, James Coburn and Sissy Spacek.

Great acting all around, solid story, good directing. Anyone who has spent their whole life dealing with an emotionally and psychologically abusive parent will relate, and unless you've been there you probably won't understand why the son and daughter put up with it. I did. My 95-year-old father died a month ago after decades of slights and hurts, and he still managed to deliver one last slap after he died.

I disagree with some who think this is just about a disease or dementia as if it somehow changed the father - no, it just brought out more of who the father really was. I agree this it was about love - how some adult children still want to love and have the need to be loved back.

Warnings: This movie had a disturbing amount of verbal abuse in the form of homophobia and misogyny. It is definitely not for children. Be prepared.

As a cantankerous old codger spitting and vinegaring outrage whilst wrestling dementia, Lance Henriksen is an incendiary tour de force. Award ready material, this. Turns out the crusty old coot has been cantankerously codgering all his despicable life. The illness may have lifted a filter, but it seems the nasty was there all along. There are absolutely no redeeming qualities to hang on to here, just that he lived a life, and others were involved. Harumph.

Sadly the victims of this patriarchal rage are all one dimensional, turning this into a black and white, him vs. them, wrong vs. right, lesson watch that is spelled out early on, and repeatedly hammered home for the duration.

Viggo Mortensen's directorial debut does reach for the moon, introducing heady topics, some juicy characters, and much hope for a moving movie. As the much berated son of an old fashioned gun-toting 'merican, Viggo writes himself into a homosexual relationship with a tattooed Asian nurse. Wow. Let the fireworks begin! Sadly, they do not. Just a one way vile spew from the old man, with nothing but sad, all-knowing, head-shaking looks from the other side. The surrounding, extended family seem perfect, totally supportive of each other, and doing their goldarned best of the situation. They don't seem to have any problems or issues of their own. Everything and everyone in this movie exists solely as a reaction to the old man. And worst of all, they are boring. How can this be? It looks good. The performances are fine. The story has plenty of opportunity to get rolling. But apart from one spark of a fiery scene that quickly fizzles, it just sits there, stuck in neutral.

There's character study, and then there's missed opportunity. Viggo is a smart dude, and he's sure to figure this director-writer thing out. Till next time.

• hipCRANK

While the talent and performances are clear for all to see, the picture it paints fails to align with my perceptions and experiences of the world. The aging father, whose anti-social, prejudiced, misogynistic and homophobic ways have always been part of his composition - and has seemingly been accepted so endearingly by his family to the point that they would welcome him moving closer to them is just fantasy. If he had been portrayed as a likeable chap, with the onset of dementia changing his persona then, maybe, but the guy has always been a toxic piece of horse waste and probably the reason why the rest of his family moved so far away in the first instance: Fail!

I was a bit skeptic to the film due to the "bad" score, but I liked the cast and was willing to give it a try. I am glad I did. This is one of those good films, with depth and very good acting. The scandinavian actors struggle some with sounding canadian/american, but it's not hurting the film. I guess the negative reviews are from folks wanting something else, this is just a good movie.

With such annoying character and devil soul, how can people stand with him? It's so called drama as it's unreal. If that happens in real life, the consequence will only be one ending. Too unrealistics makes me rate down a bit even the movie itself for acting and directing is good.

A dementia suffering homophobe visits his gay son and his partner.

Viggo Mortensen plays the incredibly patient son and does an excellent job. Lance Henriksen plays the mean old man very credibly.

The film shows flashbacks to their past (his childhood) and the start of their strained relationship.

Honestly not a very enjoyable film, often too frank a portrayal of this difficult relationship with a seriously mean old man.

Someone as talented as viggo, one could easily expect masterpiece from him, be it in his directorial debut. That being said, not trying to take anything away from Lance henriksen who acted brilliantly in this movie alongside with Viggo. Seemingly a bit sluggish storyline, continuously hammering on "negative side of human characteristics" made it a bit mundane. Other than enjoyed greatly acting and intricate camera work.

This film is very relatable and recommended. Its a complex study of the relationships between parent and child both in the past and present and how the process of aging including dementia humbles everyone. Realistic, gritty, hard to watch at times.

But it is also beautiful, heart felt and personal in its approach to life and the compromises and acceptance that come with it. Mortensen does a wonderful job of switching from past to present scenes and then back again.

Not everything is completely explained you get glimpses of why things have gone the way they have.

Memories can be like that and we never really know all the forces and incidents that shape another's personality.

I liked this film a lot. It is memorable and well done.

Makes you appreciate having a family. Well done movie for a first time directional by Viggo

Virgo Mortensen is one of my favorite actors, I've always had huge admiration for his work. This was hard to watch on so many levels. The whole point of the picture seems to be nothing more than a steady stream of abuse heaped on everyone by a seemingly irredeemable jerk of a human being, while everyone stands around just tolerating it or trying to smooth it over. Classic abuser/enabler with no redeeming storyline that I could find. The worst acting on the parts of Viggo, the man in the role of his partner, and Laura Linney I've ever seen. I suspect perhaps Mr. Mortensen was too close to the subject matter of this film. Too bad. I will still look forward to his future films.

I love Viggo Mortensen as an actor, and now as a director as well. The film is nuanced but not always an easy watch (slurs all around). The cast is truly excellent and Mortensen's poetic, meandering but still accessible directing style and score is exactly my cup of tea. and Lance Henriksen... amazing actor.

After the first half hour I started flicking through channels but nothing else was on. I couldn't stand all the unnecessary yelling & abuse. Tried a few more times with same result so was stuck with it. After 45 minutes it got more watchable. There was far too much abuse & aggression form the paternal character. He dominated every scene & was alwayd loud. I have nursed many dementia patients over a decade & never had one that was always abusive. It's very OTT. You know early he was a horrible father so there was no need for it to go on right up to the end. As adults it wasn't plausible his chidren would still be in his life. It is even less plausible he would be around his gradnchildren with his hateful behavior. If you can get past the first half it settles down & becomes more warchable. It shows more of the other characters & doesn't have quite as much yelling.

I didn't buy the saintly John and his perfect family. Willis was utterly convincing but the amount of screen time given to his abusive behaviour was too much for me.

It is an engaging story because it makes you feel. It makes you feel angry at the father, and sorry for the other characters. It is an effective and heart felt family drama.