M.B. raises interesting points about Falling Down, but I wouldn't get too upset about the preview twist. Clearly there's nothing quite "average" about D-Fens at the start of the movie, and much less so by the end, but... I think it's equally clear that viewers DO tend to identify with him. So pure hucksterism would cause the PR folks to sell the movie that way. That said, one would hope that viewers would at some point confront the consequences implied by their identification: that it could lead to fascism. True, it was the white cop who puts together the pieces to connect and solve it. On the other hand the point is made fairly well that it is Duvall's similar plight, and his more successful handling of it, that makes him the appropriate agent to understand D-Fens. Now, M.B. raised another issue, which is the treatment of women in the film. I would take this tack: in typical Hollywood style, the Duvall cop-character asserts his wholeness, recovery, masculinity, etc. in what way? By telling his wife to shut up. I don't see any great progress in this; in fact it seems utterly regressive. ooop, gotta go. ______________________________________ | Rick Francis C47805NF@WUVMD | | Dep't of Comparative Literature, | | Box 1107 | | Washington University | | St. Louis, MO 63130 | ______________________________________