Viggo Mortensen’s Impressive Directorial Debut, ‘Falling’ Is Strong Awards Contender

Modern Films’ UK release of award-winning actor Viggo Mortensen’s directorial debut Falling late last year received uniformly rave reviews. And, although the European release was hampered by the global Covid-19 pandemic, it was also shown in cinemas in the actor’s native Denmark and in Spain. The film’s wider worldwide online release is 5 February 2021 across all digital platforms, and in theaters and on demand in the US and Canada by Quiver Distribution and Mongrel Media.

Following a strong showing last year at the Cannes, San Sebastian (where Mortensen won the prestigious Donostia Award for Lifetime Achievement), Venice and Toronto film festivals, the U.S. release this month has made the picture eligible for the 2021 awards season. Viggo Mortensen’s co-star Lance Henriksen just won the Best Actor award at the International Film Festival and Awards Macao; stateside, he will be put up in Supporting Actor categories for the role. And Henriksen has already been awarded a best Supporting Actor award, a prize he shared with his younger self, ably played by Sverrir Gudnasson, at the CinEuphoria awards 2021.

Viggo Mortensen (Green Book, Captain Fantastic, Eastern Promises, The Lord of the Rings trilogy) writes, directs and stars in this sometimes difficult to watch but always engrossing movie about a son dealing with the mental deterioration of his father Willis, masterfully played by Lance Henrikson (Alien vs Predator, Terminator) and Sverrir Gudnason (Borg vs McEnroe) as the younger Willis. Mortensen stars as John Peterson, a middle-aged gay man whose conservative and homophobic father Willis, after showing serious signs of dementia, is persuaded to consider a permanent move from his farm to Los Angeles, to live near his daughter Sarah, played by Laura Linney (Ozark, The Roads Not Taken, Sully, Nocturnal Animals) and John with his husband Eric (Terry Chen) and their adopted daughter Mónica (Gabby Velis).

Although the film opens in the present as Willis leaves his rural life to visit John in California, flashbacks to events, both happy and painful, decades earlier are deftly woven into the story. The evolution of Willis’ toxic personality as a young father to an old man who doesn’t hold back with his hateful, verbal abuse of his son, is very well communicated. Mortensen’s John is resigned and patient, refusing to rise to Willis’ distressing insults, partly because he realises his father’s lashing out is prompted by frustration at his deteriorating mental condition and resulting loss of control.

Falling isn’t a biopic but the film was inspired by Mortensen’s own experiences caring for his mother and he started writing the story after her death. Moving and powerful performances by Henriksen and Mortensen show how subjective and unreliable memory is. In an introduction to the film in London, Mortensen said he was frustrated at how dementia has often been falsely portrayed in film, with people always shown to be confused. His own experiences taught him that it’s not helpful to correct people with dementia; it’s essential to learn how to serve them, not yourself. Mortensen has done a fine job at portraying dementia in a more thorough, multi-faceted way.

With an impressive track record as an actor, Mortensen has worked with some of the world’s top directors including Jane Campion (The Portrait of a Lady), David Cronenberg (Eastern Promises) and Peter Jackson (Lord of the Rings). Viggo Mortensen’s attentive observation over the years of these masters at work has clearly paid off for this first time director; Falling is absorbing and essential viewing.

Modern Films’ UK digital release of Falling is 5 February 2021. The film will also be released by Quiver Distribution 5 February in the United States in theaters, on digital and on demand.