''Falling'' is a 2008

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

written, directed and starring

Richard Dutcher Richard Alan Dutcher (born 1964)Click "Biography" in the bottom-left of this web site: is an American independent filmmaker who produces, writes, directs, edits, and frequently stars in his films. After making '' God's Army'', a successful 2000 ...

. The film was released on January 18, 2008. Dutcher advertised the movie as "The First R-rated Mormon Movie" during its brief theatrical run in 2008.

Cast

as Eric Boyle * Virginia Reece as Davey Boyle * Cesar Garcia as Ruiz * Frank Uzzolino as Hector * Maria Eberline as Lorena * Tennison Hightower as Linda * Hamilton Mitchell as Marc * Leonard Kelly-Young as Marvin

Production

Filming

The film was shot in Hollywood and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. The film was financed by

(who was writer, director, co-producer, actor and co-editor) with a budget of $500,000.

Release

The film was premiered in The Gateway Theater on January 18, 2008. The film also screened in Beverly Hills Music Hall on August 15, 2008. ''Falling'' was screened in Camelot Theaters (

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

) in 2009. The film was screened at

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

in 2011. The film was officially re-released on April 27, 2012 in Broadway Centre Cinemas in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

Reception

Critical response

The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' said: "''Falling'' is one of the best pictures of its kind in recent memory", and Dave Wolverton from ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' said: "''Falling'' is one of the 5 most powerful films I have ever seen." BoxOffice Magazine gave ''Falling'' four stars and said: "An important and indelible work ... impossible to forget.", and Wade Major said: "Dutcher has joined the ranks of the very best independent filmmakers in the world."

''Nightcrawler'' lawsuit

After the theatrical premiere of '' Nightcrawler'', Richard Dutcher sued its director, claiming ''Nightcrawler'' was a rip-off of Dutcher's film, since the main character of both films is a journalist who sells records of crimes and

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

s to various media, and both films take place in Los Angeles. Dutcher's attorney Stephen Silverman stated that ''Nightcrawler'' has enough in common with ''Falling'' to justify the lawsuit. After three years, judge

Dee Benson Dee Vance Benson (August 25, 1948 – November 30, 2020) was an American jurist who served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Utah. He was nominated as judge by President George H. W. Bush on ...

agreed that the two films have some similarities. On August 19, 2019, Benson closed the case, saying that similar elements are a necessary ingredient for stringer-themed films, and that the two films are too different to have any major

copyright infringement Copyright infringement (at times referred to as piracy) is the use of Copyright#Scope, works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the c ...

References

External links

{{IMDb title, id=0790660, title=Falling 2008 films 2008 independent films 2008 drama films Films about murder Films directed by Richard Dutcher Films set in Los Angeles Films shot in California American independent films