Fallen (1998)

Homicide detective John Hobbes witnesses the execution of serial killer Edgar Reese. Soon after the execution the killings start again, and they are very similar to Reese's style.

Director:

Gregory Hoblit

Writer:

Nicholas Kazan

Stars:

Denzel Washington, John Goodman, Donald Sutherland

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Denzel Washington	...	John Hobbes
John Goodman	...	Jonesy
Donald Sutherland	...	Lt. Stanton
Embeth Davidtz	...	Gretta Milano
James Gandolfini	...	Lou
Elias Koteas	...	Edgar Reese
Gabriel Casseus	...	Art
Michael J. Pagan	...	Sam
Robert Joy	...	Charles
Frank Medrano	...	Charles' Killer
Ronn Munro	...	Mini Golf Owner
Cynthia Hayden	...	Society Woman
Ray Xifo	...	Society Man
Tony Michael Donnelly	...	Toby
Tara Carnes	...	Teenage Girl

Storyline

Det. John Hobbes is convinced that when killer Edgar Reese is executed, all of his troubles are over. But when people he knows and people on the street start to sing the same tune that Reese sang in the gas chamber, and those same people taunt him, he is told that maybe the cursed fallen angel Azazel is behind it all. Azazel is cursed to roam the Earth without a form, and he can switch bodies by any contact, making him hard to track. When Hobbes is forced to kill a man possessed by Azazel, he must clear his name while protecting his family and others from the evil, vengeful Azazel.

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Plot Keywords:

azazel | fallen angel | demon | demonic possession | detective | 

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Taglines:

Time is on my side....

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Syriac Assyrian Neo-Aramaic

Release Date:

16 January 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fallen

Filming Locations:

Holmesburg Prison - 8215 Torresdale Avenue, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,401,566, 16 January 1998, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$25,188,006, 22 March 1998

Company Credits

Production Co:

Turner Pictures (I), Atlas Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

All of the cabin scenes were filmed in an area of New Jersey known as the Pine Barrens.

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Goofs

When (after about 78 minutes) Hobbes enters Stanton's office, Stanton is hanging up the phone. In the next cut, when Hobbes sits down, Stanton is hanging up the phone once again.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Azazel: I wanna tell you about the time I almost died...

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Connections

Referenced in The Making of 'Alien³' (2003)

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Soundtracks

Where It's At
Written by Beck (as Beck Hansen), John King and Michael Simpson (as Mike Simpson)
Performed by Beck
Published by Cyanide Breathmint Music/BMG Songs, Inc.
Courtesy of DGC Records
By Arrangement With Universal Music Special Markets

User Reviews

More Than Your Average Supernatural Suspense Thriller!

After my initial viewing of the movie, Fallen, I knew that I had just seen a brilliant film. However, I did have a few questions, mostly concerning plot holes and things of that nature, so I immediately watched the parts in question again and found that everything ties in nicely with very few, if any, plot holes. If there are, I can not find them.

John Hobbes (Denzel Washington) is a homicide detective who apprehended a killer named Reese, who is put to death for his crimes. Upon witnessing his execution, Hobbes continues on with his life until similar murders happen to catch his attention. It turns out that Reese was possessed by the demon, Azazel. Azazel is able to transfer himself from human to human simply by touching them, in most cases. So Azazel eventually finds himself a human host and begins another murder trail, confusing detectives by killing someone and leaving his hosts fingerprints and other evidence, then switching bodies and killing his previous host. As you can see, this can wreak havoc on a detective trying to solve these murders. Luckily, Azazel is more interested in exacting revenge on Hobbes than keeping his game a secret and lets Hobbes in on it, which is where the movie really takes off.

The directing and camera work in this movie was superb. It was done in such a way where you can see Azazel's spirit go from person to person simply by following the camera up and down the crowd and watching the subtle touches one makes in a normal walk about town.

Although this movie does require your full attention, it does not go unrewarded and you are not left at the end scratching your head wondering what had happened for the past 2 hours. All the answers to your questions are in there and that is why I think this movie is way above average. Why I have not heard of this movie before is beyond me. I think maybe the title came across as a bit generic, which the film is anything but. It comes highly recommended by me. 9.5/10