"How'd that happen? I did everything they told me too." That. That was the line that just ruined me. I sobbed.

D-Fens is the only movie villain I've ever felt genuinely sorry for. I empathize with him so much.

My favorite movie an underrated classic :)

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

One of mine too. This basic instinct and wall street are Michael Douglas prime for me

D-Fens is a typical villain protagonist you can sympathize with. Since you see the story mostly from his perspective it's easier to overlook what a terrible man he actually can be. Reminds me of the poor family in Parasite, they also do horrible and unforgivable actions but you can understand their anger and desperation.

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

That's a good parallel to draw

@veryoddnaw

2 жыл бұрын

I can understand why D-Fens acts like this but at the same time I know what the other side feel like (except the gang and the nazi) I understand why the prices are up, because it cost more to make a product or the company thinks they can just raise a price and no one will bat an eye, I know how it feels to work at a fast food joint and how horrible customers can be, Hell I almost experienced a school shooting in middle school due to a kid threatening to shoot it up online and everyone staying home because of it, D-Fens in my eyes is understandable but facist character who wants the 1950’s to come back but doesn’t realize the things he’s doing is exactly why the nazi saids they’re the same, they may have different intentions but they both want to go back to a simpler time and are using violence to do so. For god sake when he talks to the Korean shop-owner when he snaps, “You come to my country, take my money, and don’t even learn my language,” he also doesn’t care about anyone else, when the gang come back and try to shoot him, the only ones that get shot are civilians and he just walks away and doesn’t care, same with the gay couple, he’s uncomfortable but he could’ve spoken up and if it did get violent, he had a gun. What I’m trying to say is, yes, D-Fen is a character you can understand why he acts the way he does but he’s also someone you shouldn’t root for.

@PeakedInterest

2 жыл бұрын

@Very Odd - I agree with this take.

I get that feeling for those character sometimes in movies and in videogames, that we can relate to them somewhat in strange ways. does that make me crazy or psychopathic? well no, its just how we feel sometimes during certain events in movies and videogames in general. and that's it, simple as that no?

@PeakedInterest

4 жыл бұрын

It's a great example of how to write a relatable character, these days people get lazy and just change their gender or ethnicity and think that's enough but for me everyone should be able to relate or it's not a relatable character

I watched all 10 movie clips and honestly could already relate to it, just the fact that one bad day can just send someone's sanity straight to shit is unbelievable, but We've all had those days even though most of us wouldn't dare cross the line

@obatola

2 жыл бұрын

Why not just watch the whole movie?

@nvmffs

2 жыл бұрын

I don't think it was one bad day. He got fired a month ago.

I've never seen this movie before, but I'll definitely have to try and try it down. Thanks for another great review/essay.

@PeakedInterest

4 жыл бұрын

You're most welcome, thanks for taking the time to watch

It just occurred to me that after the actual gift to his daughter had been smashed, he decided to make his gift a solid life insurance payout..

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

You know I never noticed that

@chasecash1363

3 жыл бұрын

Rewatching the movie it appears that he may have been on his way to kill his ex wife and daughter.

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

That would make his changing of the insurance policy totally pointless.

@chasecash1363

3 жыл бұрын

@@PeakedInterest at least his ex wife. Not the daughter

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

That's possible. Though at multiple times throughout the movie he has chances to kill people and the only time he does it is when he's in a kill or be killed situation with the Nazi store owner.

Falling Down is a great film.

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

Indeed it is

This is a great dive into the character of Foster, focusing solely on him, and leaving a lot of the politics at the door. While I do love dissecting this movie on the political front too, a lot of reviews and perspectives I've seen/read eventually break down into those themes instead of sticking with Foster. It's just a great movie all around for discussion on people, society, or just plain having enough of being kicked around by life.

@PeakedInterest

2 жыл бұрын

Completely agree

"I'm a bad guy?" - That line hit me hard. Great analysis @Peaked Interest bro.

@PeakedInterest

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks. It's a great movie and the character is a really fascinating one to me

@aswinbalamurugan6114

2 жыл бұрын

@@PeakedInterest I am from India. There is a film named "Evano Oruvan", which is loosely based on this film. Also, in my opinion this is the best character I have seen in a fictional story. He did what was taught to him by the society as right. Yet, society accuses him of being wrong. It's a kind of Paradox. Lol.

@PeakedInterest

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah it's a really interesting look at how society can pass people by even when they do what they're told.

This movie takes me back to my childhood god I miss the 90s. Perfect analysis of this movie and how we identify with villains.

1993 New in the US ,this is the first movie that I watched .Still my all time favorite..

Nice Job! ...as always.

@PeakedInterest

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks, nice to see you again. Hope you're keeping well

This movie is where Joker got its plot.

@PeakedInterest

4 жыл бұрын

There's a lot of similarities though I would say this movie executed it better

@tardis7395

4 жыл бұрын

I'd say Joker was more inspired by Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy, which this film was also likely inspired by

@PeakedInterest

4 жыл бұрын

They all have very similar themes of societal separation, isolation and prejudice

@ralphwiggum1982

3 жыл бұрын

Peaked Interest the one thing with falling down is William is so relatable other then him being a unbalanced person but the fact that he’s a regular guy who had a regular job ended up loosing it an his family an just a feeling of being completely lost an lonely in a world that has tossed you to the side

Another eye opening reflection on the film. I hadn’t considered his manners would make him relatable as a character. I enjoy everybody’s analysis on this film because usually there is something different pointed out each time. Most people think Bill Foster is offended by Mr.Lee saying to take the money. That was never his intention and still isn’t after he is destroying the store.

This was a great video and gave me such good insight as to why I like this movie so much. I think it was ahead of its time, and now with how messed up things are in our society, it is becoming more remembered. Really great video

@PeakedInterest

2 ай бұрын

Its such a well written, acted and directed movie.

@davecasebolt6418

2 ай бұрын

@@PeakedInterest Agee. Michael Dougles even said D - fens was one of his favorite characters he's ever played, he even took a pay cut to play the role.

@PeakedInterest

2 ай бұрын

@davecasebolt6418 it's because a lot of what he says is relatable. Who hasn't felt like they did everything they were told and still ended up with the shaft? I think we all have at some point.

Excellent insight. Must watch this brilliant movie again.

Absolutely stellar review!! Truly extraordinary

Im going absolutely feral i LOVE this movie and had to analyse it in high school. Incredible movie

I couldn’t have said it better myself Love the video

Man that was a good one!

Sir, this was really well done. In the words of Wonderwoman, you should be very proud.

Honestly I'd this movie makes you feel like you are being disenfranchised by a machine that you served well, then maybe you shouldn't be serving a machine that uses you to oppress and denigrate other people to the point where you find yourself wondering why you're in a suit with an automatic weapon threatening to kill someone over a breakfast sandwich.

I mean, we also relate because it's a power fantasy. All those relatable moments, he does what we sometimes wish we could do, but know we can't. He's the argument we all have in the shower.

🤔ABSOLUTELY EXCELLENT REVIEW👍

Small critique on an otherwise good analysis : if you put your examples in chronological order you can illustrate how it’s the antagonists that escalate the stakes with bill. His weapons arsenal grows each time an antagonistic party crosses him…

@PeakedInterest

Жыл бұрын

Very true. Good spot

DFens was becoming a glitch in the system. This may explain why he was able to survive a drive by shooting without a single scratch. " i did everything THEY told me to do".. " THEY lied to me".. and notice the detective never asked him who " they" is .. And he concurred " they lie to everyone, including the fish ". Who would lie to the fish ???? This movie is deeper than we think .... He's dressed very corporately , almost like an agent from the movie " Matrix" which makes him look out of place and a soft target as the two gang members thought he was . my theory suggest DFens was a type of gate keeper to a system that exist but is hidden in plain sight, like stealth . but as he aged or became more human, the " theys" kicked him out the fraternal chain into a world he never had to encounter on a direct level. Its like a CEO doing janitorial work. So much symbolism in this movie.. And Btw , that damn cheeseburger did look sorry as Hell. It looked like a pancake with meat squished in the middle. This should have been a Burger King commercial with them nasty Whoopers

What you think the MOST determines the quality of the character the acting performance or the writing?

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

I don't think it can be separated. Without a good actor even good writing goes unnoticed

@ghostofdeath663

3 жыл бұрын

@@PeakedInterest for an example compare juaquin phoenix and Ben Affleck..... alright juaquin is a better actor but the better written character is batman, arthur was just a mentally ill punk mad at the world. The director and writers make and finish the character and the actor follows what's given to him.

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

Mentally ill punk who's mad at the world is an adequate description of both batman and Arthur fleck lol

@ghostofdeath663

3 жыл бұрын

@@PeakedInterest lmao true but bruce is still miles better tho if we're talking about the writing only tho

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

Arthur fleck is a very well written character in my opinion. If you igbore the title of the movie and disconnect it from the batman universe and think of it as a standalone movie then it's actually a much better movie

What is the music at the start of 8:33?

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

The music on this video is all from epidemic sound.com

My favorite villain is light from death Note

What the Beastie Boys say YOU GOTTA FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHT.

The older i get, the more i understand D-Fens

It’s crazy how we made the character a villain based off his reaction two people who are truly the villains forget it in a following society where high-paying careers can’t even afford to sustain yourself and women don’t love you unless you have money. I mean his situation in general Dave him every right to react the way he did. Modern women leaving men because they can’t handle the pressure of being demand support system in such a failed society. They could have left the part out with the home family tapes Making him look so aggressive and it would have been a better movie. Because realistically those HomeMovies of him reacting aggressively to his wife and daughter were the only thing that truly made him look like a bad guy because every other aspect of the movie is something you feel relatable to. I honestly think they should have left that aspect out of the movie

How many people would have liked to have yelled out a window I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore.

With this film, the main character, even though violent, is pushed to his limit, whether by hot weather, traffic not moving, or some thugs setting on him. He's right about the cost of a soda, the racism of that surplus store man. And all he wants to do is go home.

he didn't start off bad that day. the last straw hit...he couldn't move on the freeway so he tried walking to his destination on his own...just wanting to get a present to his daughter on her birthday. enter asshats in gangs and his lucky defeat of those guys. i'd still say at this point he wasn't a bad guy. did he kill that nazi or just beat him up?...don't remember, but still not a bad guy. the korean grocer? over charging for a soda? hardly worth the damage he did to the store and he should have paid him something for that, but still not a bad guy. whammyburger....while i agree that breakfast/lunch menu's should be available all day, he was wrong here by using a gun in a crowded place and terrorizing those people. this is where he started to turn into the bad guy. when the gangbangers shot at him and missed though he was still a good guy at that point.bottom line, if you can see anything at all in humanity, you should be able to see the possibility of this happening at some point to yourself....life chits and chits on you everyday, its a matter of time until your moment comes. for many...most i'd say, the moment comes and you still somehow pull yourself back from the brink. i guess this guy had a little more than his share that day and gave no more chits about anything other than getting to his daughters birthday.

I think this is a largely misunderstood movie, which is a shame because the filmmakers aren’t exactly subtle about their message. D-Fens is in many ways meant to be a mirror held up to white middle class Americans. He’s a seemingly polite, well-mannered man who only loses his temper when he’s pushed too far. But that’s only on the most superficial level. As we learn more about him it becomes clear that it’s all a facade. He is a deeply narcissistic and selfish man who is, at best, indifferent to the plight of others and only cares when he’s personally affected. He has held an entitled position and expects things to be just as he wants them to be and gets angry and lashes out at the slightest provocation. It doesn’t matter how polite and well mannered he is if he in turn hurls racist abuse at store owner and busts up his store. He reacts badly to being called a thief, but that’s exactly what he is, paying 50 cents instead of 85 is still technically robbery. He gets unreasonably angry over some fairly petty things through out the movie. And for all his nostalgic reminiscences and yearning for days gone by, those “good ol days” we’re only better for him, not so much for those around him.

@PeakedInterest

Жыл бұрын

completely fair

Postal the movie

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

Pretty much

"Are we all psychopaths"... yall maybe. I don't know about all this "we" business...

Had a bit of trouble hearing you clearly over the music.

Movie critics and academics be like, action movies have zero depth to them. Falling down exists

Villain? Impulsive? No, his only shortcoming was in not permanently "fixing" more of the people he encountered in the film.

@MiketheNerdRanger

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah, he's a villain. Notice how he also never cared about the shit he claimed to care about when it was happening to someone else, or the other people that got hurt because of his shenanigans, or his racist proclivities, I can go on.

I can only relate to these kind of protagonists. I am sick of classic heroes. I have nothing in commo0n with them how the fuck am i supposed to feel connected with them? XD

@MiketheNerdRanger

2 жыл бұрын

Well he's not a hero at all. He is just a psychopath, point blank period. One of the most pivotal scenes of the movie is when the Nazi said that he was the same as him, and *he was right.* if you have a lot in common with *this* guy, then we should all be concerned.

Background music stinks.

@PeakedInterest

3 жыл бұрын

Apologies, music can't please everyone. Hopefully you might enjoy other videos a bit more

I don't think everyone experiences what you did watching this film. I watched it as an adult when it came out and I identified the main character as the bad guy immediately upon his first interaction. Back then, we didn't call them incels, but that is what he is... I wonder why YOU relate to him? Watching this was one amazingly bad take after another... I will be taking a hard pass on your channel...

"villain"

This video seems to confuse the terms "anti-hero" with "villain protagonist," and shows the problem with the latter: victimism or blaming the victim for the crimes against them. My definition of an antihero is a neutral or" morally grey" character, or one whose behavior neither helps nor harms others. I think of neutrality as behavior nobody knows or agrees is good or bad, such as substance abuse, non-marital, kinky or non-monogamous sex, consensual profanity use, etc. To qualify as an antihero, D-Fens would have to spend the movie smoking pot and having group sex and BDSM! His violent tantrums, intimidation and murders make him clearly a villain. His initially reasonable, polite behavior fit the "Affably Evil" or "Faux Affably Evil," "Family Values Villain" tropes or a narcissist or sociopath using superficial charm to lure victims. I think this movie was dangerously unrealistic in its portrayal of spree killers, mass shooters and hate crimes, since it shows him only harming people who were rude or unfair to him. Most mass shooters are spousal abusers, religious extremists and bigots. Here's how the movie would really happen: D-Fens was probably abused in a conservative, religious family, hence his old-fashioned appearance, anger management issues. This provoked his domestic violence, divorce, firing and shooting spree.

@PeakedInterest

2 жыл бұрын

noun noun: antihero a central character in a story, film, or drama who lacks conventional heroic attributes. "with the age of the anti-hero, baddies and goodies became less distinguishable from one another" Pretty much exactly as I defined it. In the movie each of his acts are things which at the very least we can empathize with but most times agree with the sentiment behind it. It's only his method which is disagreeable.

The background music is way too loud

Does he not have a conscience or did he just decide to take his morals into his own hands? I mean when he’s killing Nazis and gangbangers why should he have a guilty conscience?

In too many ways D-Fens is NOT reasonable at all. 1) he is driving somewhere, and we never learn why 2) calls his wife but is unable to talk politely to her 3) expects the grocer to give him change for no gain 4) gets in a fight over 35 cents, causing hundreds of dollars in damage - oh but yeah, he's not a thief. We all can relate to high prices? Boo hoo, we all have the option to walk away. 5) throws a childish tantrum about breakfast and then later decides to get lunch. 6) fights two people over his briefcase (after having walked away from a much more valuable car) and then later gives it away and it is shown to contain almost nothing.

@PeakedInterest

Жыл бұрын

I think you mistook my pointing out that his complaints are relatable with me advocating his actions. That's not what I was saying, I was. Saying that his everyday struggles are what make his anger relatable, not what justifies his actions..nothing justifies any of his actions.

@tkoch7503

Жыл бұрын

@@PeakedInterest 2:44 "Each time a frustrating incident happens, it's always preceded by him attempting to be reasonable." - "he is simply looking for change" - well, he is expecting the shop owner to help him - at no profit for the shopkeeper. "Do something for me for free" is not really reasonable, but it is an attitude that a lot of "customers" will have. "he attempts to barter and lower the price". Yes, he asks the shopkeeper to take 35 cents less. What does the shopkeeper get out of this? We don't know what HIS cost is for the can. Maybe he would even lose money at 50 cents. But he should be okay for every customer to cut his profit by 35 cents? Sure, hey, no problem, it's only 35 cents. is that what the customer thinks too? Then why not pay it? The shop keeper though, if he does this for every customer or even ten customers a day, the he is out $1,000 at the end of the year. Much of the time, like at Burger palace, his attempt to be "reasonable" is him asking some people to do something for him - free gratis. "let's be reasonable, let's compromise - do it my way." But meanwhile, he is not that flexible about his desires, like hey, maybe you can eat something else. He doesn't understand (or care) that there is probably a ten minute procedure for three employees to switch from breakfast to lunch and they have to prepare to satisfy a whole bunch of people looking for lunch, and that it's not that feasible to adjust for one guy who is acting like a stubborn brat. Although THAT is sort of a problem with big cities. Each person becomes less important because they are only 1 in 1,000 or 1 in 10,000. Whereas in a small town, as 1 in 50, and as somebody who is known and also knows the servers, things are more personable, and less regimented.

@PeakedInterest

Жыл бұрын

Well again, I'm not saying his ACTIONS are relatable, I'm saying his frustrations are. So - shop is frustration with massive inflation Burger place is frustration at arbitrary time schedules Nazi guy is frustration at being branded the same as him because they're relatively same age. These are all things average Joe would or is frustrated at too. His actions and how he responds to these frustrations are deplorable but the fact he feels frustrated is relatable for many

Dude, I think you're missing the mark here. The whole movie is showing how he's the bad guy. "He does ransack the store, but only because the think the prices are extortionist" You're painting him out to be this victim, while ignoring the fact that this is exactly how imperialist colonialism functions. Politeness is the Hallmark of modern imperialist white supremacist capitalist patriarchy. He isn't making America great again by being angry about being told no when he feigns politeness. He's perpetuating the same system that gave him that advantage that he seems to have lost in the first place. Politeness is just a white collar way to oppress people, and when it doesn't work he gets violent.

@PeakedInterest

2 жыл бұрын

I think you missed the point of the video, I wasn't painting him to be the hero. I was showing how they made him likeable to a general audience. Being likeable and being the hero of the story are not the same thing.

@FlyGravitas

2 жыл бұрын

@@PeakedInterest you're mincing words. Painting him as a likable anti-hero is still glorifying his actions and character. You are making what is, essentially, the lament of the white male middle class abusing those around him, because he feels victimized by a system that told him he was the greatest thing the earth has produced, out to be a heroic (or anti-heroic) tale of misunderstanding and tragedy. Read what I said again. He is the product and avatar of an imperialist-white supremacist-capitalist-patriarchy that feels as if he deserves to be treated with more reverence and when he finds out the world doesn't give a shit about him he acts out his frustration in violence towards every ACTUALLY marginalized community he comes into contact with. It was Shumacher heralding the birth of the jncel in satire.