Plot
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.

Release Year: 1998

Rating: 6.8/10 (32,400 voted)

Director: Gregory Hoblit

Stars: Denzel Washington, John Goodman, Donald Sutherland

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.

Cast:
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

Taglines: Detective John Hobbes is searching for a criminal he's already met... already caught... and already killed.

Release Date: 16 January 1998

Filming Locations: Bear Mountain Bridge, New York, USA

Opening Weekend: $10,401,586 (USA) (19 January 1998) (2448 Screens)

Gross: $25,188,006 (USA) (22 March 1998)

Runtime: 124 min

Trivia:
During preproduction, Elias Koteas traveled to Ohio to meet a man who could speak Syrian-Aramaic, to help him with his dialogue. The man was happy to help, but would not say the swear words in the speech, as he was too religious. As such, the production had to find another Syrian-Aramaic speaker who was willing to speak the profane lines for Koteas.

Goofs:
Continuity: 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

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

Chilling yet intriguing

Rating: 9/10

Fallen is not your typical suspense film. There is very little gore, a clever plot, gorgeous cinematography...but it all adds up to the scariest movie I've ever seen. Why? It plays with your mind. The horror is confined to your brain and not shown onscreen. Some people will (and do) hate this film; it eschews graphic storytelling for a visual, intellectual approach. The ending, which has been criticized for many reasons, is actually the only plausible way it could end. Yes we like to see the human spirit triumph, but more often than not things do not work out the way we like them to. It's refreshing to see a movie which ends on a real level, giving the film a true-to-life credibility which enhances the terror even more. Highly recommended for the intellectual person. Those easily bored stay away.

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