Falling (2020)

(On Cable TV, July 2021) As usual, it’s interesting to see what actors pick as material when they go for their first film as director. In Viggo Mortensen’s case, with his directing debut Falling, the stakes are even higher considering that he’s also writing the script, co-producing the film and starring in it. Aiming at low-key drama, the film features Mortensen as an airplane pilot dealing with a hideously ultraconservative father teetering on the edge of dementia. Lance Henriksen plays the father as a quasi-caricature of the worst possible person in the world made even worse by the onset of dementia — crudely intolerant of his son’s lifestyle and homosexuality, quick to lash out at everyone he sees, alternately confused and aggressive. It’s almost too good a portrayal: it certainly justifies the other characters washing their hands from him, makes the inevitable confrontation sweeter and softens an ending that could have been considered tragic if it had featured a nicer character. In terms of writing and directing, Mortensen does well — this is clearly a project for showcasing actors and dramatic situations with raw intensity, meaning that it’s not really meant for a wide audience. Still, it’s gracefully handled and in-between Mortensen and Henriksen (plus Laura Linney in a supporting role), there’s an interesting interplay between the actors. (Canadian cinephiles will laugh as how the film’s two proctologists are played in cameo roles by national filmmaking titans David Cronenberg and Paul Gross.) While there’s clearly a limited audience for this kind of unpleasant low-stakes drama, Falling does mark an honourable performance for Mortensen behind and in front of the camera.