Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

When A Man Falls: I can't believe that this movie is listed under the "thriller" genre.  Because, trust me, there is nothing "thrilling" about this slow, sleepy drama.

We get to meet four people - each of whom is - well - miserable.  Each has withdrawn in his or her own way from other people.

Bill (Dylan Baker) works alone, at night.  During the day, he sleeps or listens to music through his headphones.  He chooses this lifestyle in order to interact with as few other people as possible.  Gary and Karen (Timothy Hutton and Sharon Stone) are married, but might as well be living apart for all their interaction.  They barely speak.  She's clearly depressed for various reasons.  He is withdrawn for his own reasons.  Neither tries too hard to break the barrier; it's just easier to live together, but separately, I guess.  And Travis (Pruitt Taylor Vince) has been living in a world of shame and guilt following a traumatic incident a few years back.

The men share one thing in common - they all went to high school together.  Bill was the nerd, picked on and bullied by Gary and Travis.  And while the men feel bad about their treatment of Bill all those years ago, it's pretty much too late to really make things up to him; the damage has already been done.

The movie follows these four people, although Travis receives the least amount of time.  Too bad, as his story was a very interesting one and should have been delved into more deeply.  Most of the time is spent with Bill, who is practicing the art of "lucid dreaming" - whereby he gets to live out his fantasies while he dreams.  Indeed, it's only in his dreams where he has the confidence and courage to follow his heart.

The rest of the movie has us watching Gary and Karen's marriage hit a brick wall.  But it's another case of too little information.  We are given a slight hint as to why Karen's depressed.  And as for Gary, we're given only the bare minimum of information regarding his situation. 

So we have four people, all going through difficult times, but for most of them, we don't really get to "know" them, or "understand" them.  Therefore I found it hard to sympathize too much with any of them.  It just seemed like they allowed their situations to deteriorate without lifting a finger to help themselves, or each other.  I felt sad for them, but not sympathetic. 

And so we have a rather depressing movie.  A drama that glances off our heartstrings, but never really takes hold.  Even the "big finale" at the end - the moment when all four lives intertwine - was a mere whimper.  If you blinked you would have missed it.  I didn't miss it, yet I still had to wonder "is this it?"

At less than 90 minutes long, this movie is short on backstory, thrills, and excitement.   With some very decent performances (most notably Dylan Baker) I can't help thinking how much better this movie could have been, with a different team of writers/directors/editors.  Because as it stands, something is definitely missing.  Don't fall for the exciting-sounding tagline, or the "thriller" genre... skip this movie.

Recommended: No