A transitory evil spirit (or "fallen angel") plays cat-and-mouse with police detective Denzel Washington, who is so cool-headed and amiable that this taunting, easily-transferable demon barely seems to ruffle his good nature. Occasionally gripping but only satisfactory police drama-cum-occult thriller opens with a heavy-handed introductory sequence to the players (fellow detective James Gandolfini behaves like a pushy ass in a bar, requiring Denzel to give a soap-box speech on the privileged nature of policemen). The religious angle is half-hearted, at best, while the plot minutiae is sometimes overheated (as with Washington's narration, which verges on camp: "In the night...sometimes you run into yourself" or "That question about God...what the hell did that mean?"). The scenario is so muddled it's tough to discern what city the picture takes place in. It has flashes of film-noir, but it isn't respectful to its own characters. Not uninteresting, but scattershot with a poor finish. ** from ****
Review of Fallen
