FALLING ANGELS (2003)

By Rick Jackson

Based on the novel by Barbara Gowdy, Falling Angels is an excellent character study of the dysfunctional family. Although it doesn't completely follow her novel and the film itself doesn't explain in detail about the Field family's difficulties, it is still worth watching to catch the performances of Kristin Adams and Monte Gagne who play two of the three Field daughters, Sandy and Norma respectively.

Set in 1969, the screenplay by Esta Spalding could easily fit at any time because of the universality of the overall theme. The mother, Mary Field (Miranda Richardson) sits and stares and most of the time, while the father Jim Field (Callum Keith Rennie) drinks a lot. He does have a job but you never see him working. However, this doesn't matter since the story is really about the Field family at home and how their problems of everyday life have reared their ugly head in a loving household.

The third daughter, Lou, is played by Katherine Isabelle and together with Sandy and Norma, the trio stay together as the sole stabling influence within the family unit.

There are also some intense scenes which resonate with truth and conviction. This nuclear family is not perfect, and you know this right from the start. As you watch the dramatic elements play out, you are absorbed by the three daughters and their concern over their parents. Although you are not fully told the real problem plaguing their mother, you still realize how much she is loved and respected by them.

Similarly, you don't know where the father works but he is able to provide for his family. When he gets drunk and later orders his wife and kids to get in the underground bunker, it is more his concern for their welfare.

Rennie's performance shows two sides to the father as a person. He may appear to be cold and uncaring at times, but during the Christmas sequence you see his real side and experience how his love transcends everything else to become a positive step toward redemption.

Just before the end credits roll, the father and his three daughters are staring at Niagara Falls, which once meant something special to Mrs. Field. They are all sharing in a moment of renewed optimism as they stand together as one family ready to carry on with their lives. The wishes of the three daughters is to live out their dreams; for the fathre it is a chance to return to a once happy and loving home.

Director Scott Smith uses that one last shot at the end to underscore this point for the falling angels of the film's title. It is poignant and lasting.

Copyright 2004 Rick Jackson