Customer Reviews

When a Man Falls

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

The original title of this bleak flim - WHEN A MAN FALLS IN THE FOREST - was inexplicably shortened to the nebulous WHEN A MAN FALLS for the release of the DVD: had the original title been retained, the audience may have been given a clue as to the intended message of the story. This is the second film for 26-year old writer/director Ryan Eslinger and it does suggest that he wants to deal with some existential material, but he has a way to grow into how to make it happen.

The lives of three men and a woman are interconnected in the all too common shallow 'relationships' that are a major problem in how our society is working. Bill (Dylan Baker) is a night janitor in a large company, a man who shuts out the boring world with his earphones connected to the great opera classics: he avoids people including those who saunter past him and those whose chaotic lives in the next door apartment distress him. Gary Fields (Timothy Hutton) is a down and out professional man who works in the building that Bill nocturnally keeps tidy, the two 'old high school acquaintances' meeting only because Gary has taken to sleeping in the office. Gary's wife Karen (Sharon Stone, without makeup and looking spent and used) has lost all feeling for living, detests Gary, and finds her only joy is in shoplifting. Gary has shut himself off from old friends for reasons that seem to be related to an accident that involved is best friend Travis (Pruitt Taylor Vince), a man at odds with his own environment. The only apparent connection here is that, once Gary discovers that Bill is a night janitor, Gary and Travis feel guilty that their response to Bill in high school had been one of cruel ridicule. Each of the four main characters wanders aimlessly through a world that has become strange and vindictive and it is only a bizarre incident that throws the quartet into some semblance of meaning. Each person has fallen, but since they are in the midst of a lonely 'forest', has anyone noticed or cared?

This could be a study in personal tragedy were it done better, but despite the fine credentials of the actors, the script is so full of holes that character development suffers and what results is not unlike watching an injured bull struggling around a bullfight ring as the crowd attends to the matador et al. Sadly we just don't care about these damaged people, making connection with the film next to impossible. Maybe next film...Grady Harp, February 08

This had to be one of the worst movies that I have seen-its extremely boring and the characters are as dull as the film.
No plot to speak of and you can't tell if the Bill character is dreaming or actually awake. Please don't waste your money even on a rental

Don't waste your time, this is a horrible film. The plot was ridiculous, the story was dismal and drawn out. No surprises and I regret spending a dime on it for the rental fee. Hutton and Stone should have never put their names to the title.

Um, can you say one of the worst movies ever? The only man that fell here was me..falling for the price of renting this horrible movie! Lifeless, dreary, and humorless. Perhaps has something to do with the depressing plot: A loser janitor (Dylan Baker), listens to opera and has emotional and social issues. Fast forward to he meets up with another loser (Hutton), and his loser shop-lifting wife (Stone). Stone looks stoned. Stone looks yucky. Somewhere I lost interest. I think it was like right after the opening credits. No. Maybe it was the awful acting. Still, it could have been the lack of a coherent plot, I don't really know or care. But if you want a "gripping psychological thriller" as the box claims, then you'll do yourself a favor and keep looking. What a waste of talent.

Do not waste your money to rent or buy this one. Although it has a pretty good cast-Sharon Stone and Timothy Hutton--the plot is confusing--it jumps around alot and is boring--to say the least. The actors seem to just walk thru their roles in a senseless plot. I guess they needed the money. I barely made it thru the movie--good thing I just rented it and lost only $3--stay away from this one. My question is--Why did they make this straight to video movie?

This DVD is horribly misadvertised as a Psychological Thriller. This was obviously a pathetic ploy by the DVD distributor to get the DVD off the shelves by any means necessary with no thought to doing the consumer, nor the film any justice. The result is that people are watching this film with entirely the wrong mindset.

This film is a dramatic look at the lives and relationships (or lack of relationships) of the four main characters. It is a thought provoking look into what can happen when we allow ourselves to dwell within our personal misery to the point that we can no longer connect to those around us. The acting, writing, cinematography and direction are excellent, and the film is riddled with beautifully captured momments of life to which so many people can relate. If you are looking for a shallow sexy thriller, see Basic Instinct or Sliver. But if you are someone who appreciates the simplistic intracacies of what makes up the soul of a person...this movie is an excellent choice for you.

"When a Man Falls" has three central characters. Bill is a shy janitor who works during the nights and only seems to really come alive in his dreams when he's sleeping during the days. Gary has trouble at work and in his relationship and his wife, Karen lives out her frustrations by shoplifting. A fourth character is Gary's old friend from high school, Travis, who still hasn't gotten over a traffic accident seven years ago.

The movie was originally titled "When a Man Falls in the Forest", obviously a reference to the old philosophical riddle, "if a tree falls in the forest, and nobody is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" As expected with such a title, the focus of the movie is the characters. There's not much of a story. It is sort of like "Things You Can Tell Just By Looking At Her", only with fewer characters. Your enjoyment of the movie will depend on whether you enjoy that type of movies. If you're looking for a movie with a typical plot you may be disappointed. If you like character studies, give it a try. The characters could have been more developed, especially Pruitt Taylor Vince's. And Bill does not feel as much as an original character as someone from a TV movie with William H Macy. But the actors all do a very good job. Sharon Stone was also executive producer.

I see that a couple of reviewers were kind enough to award some extra stars for the potential of a film like this one. Sorry, but every movie has the potential to be a good one; but when it is poorly scripted, poorly plotted and poorly acted, it will be a horrible film. This is a horrible, horrible film, which wanders as aimlessly as its characters. I seem to be beating a dead horse, but I felt compelled to add my voice to the chorus of those who literally felt cheated by the misrepresentation of what this film aimed to be. Or, is that the point? Is all of life a misrepresentation; perhaps a sort of waking dream? What if . . . nah, don't bother -- the message is hopeless.

God-awful movie. I was first attrated to the movie at a popular video store because of the actors and the description on the movie sleeve. However, the description is a complete misrepresentation: "When a lonely housewife (Sharon Stone) faces the reality of her dying marriage to Gary (Timothy Hutton), she seeks comfort in unlawful and forbidden activities." Her role was minor and we see her shoplifting twice. On the front of the sleeve: "WHEN A MAN FALLS in the end . . . she got what she wanted." Well, I didn't see it coming and I never saw it coming because we don't really know what she wanted. Then, the final paragraph, "WHEN A MAN FALLS is a gripping psychological thriller sure to keep you mesmerized right up until the shocking end!" The only thing I wanted to grip was my own throat for putting myself through this unthrilling unpsychological bore of an incoherent mess.

Don't your time and save your money, for sure, one of the most boring you can look at. I can't imagine someone would buy it.