Fallen Stars (2017) User Reviews

Pleasant and Worth Watching

[lediscipledessocrates · 7/10 · 15 March 2017]

Away from the humdrum and fan fare of big budget cinema lie these Fallen Stars. There is something very authentic about this movie, despite a familiar story-line.

I on my part love movies that deal with real issues concerning ordinary individuals. The director does extremely well in doing so here.

There are no twists and turns. No unwanted cameos of melodrama. The actors play to the script , which is well written.

The movie also bears witness to the adage that a little awareness can transform very basic acting performances into effective ones.

The movie moves at a leisurely pace, in line with the general theme of the plot . The characterisation is good and the setting soothingly plain.

If you watch it without any expectations ( which is the way life too should be lived) you will stumble upon a fine movie .

A hidden gem of realistic melodramas

[flashlightreview · 6/10 · 26 October 2020]

I look for new movies to watch with the help keywords searches - the keyword that lead me to this excellent film was "ivy league". Even though that is not the main plot and this is not a college themed movie, it is a great find nonetheless.

The two leads are from different social classes, and under normal circumstances they would have never met. After frequent run-ins at the bar they become friends. Meeting new friends is not easy when you are an adult and you constantly re-assess whether you can trust someone new.

"Fallen Stars" is a title describing people who had a fall from grace. They either peaked or failed in life, and now have no idea what to do next. While the movie focuses on building this new, fragile friendship between the leads, the romantic chemistry is very visible. They communicate without speaking much - just like a real couple would be able to.

The anxiety, melancholy, loneliness and boredom are hallmarks of our times and can be felt throughout the movie.

not bad

[vriddheeg · 6/10 · 14 March 2017]

This one is a slow movie, really slow. The lead pair has no chemistry although they do have some cute moments.Most of their interactions are painful to watch, I understand the girl's character has been written that way, aloof and quiet but it is annoying, it's no fun to watch. Clearly, this movie was not made for entertainment, it gets boring a lot of places.

A great little film with big heart

[MovieIQTest · 14 March 2017]

I didn't expect to see this little gem with almost two characters who weaved just two single threads into a very colorful tapestry. Two opposite souls entrapped in their own suffocating world. One, a graduate from Yale, already a somewhat known literary figure, but mysteriously suffered unknown depression and a bit anti-social; the other one, a failed guy not even finished the college without a diploma, stayed on a deadbeat going nowhere bar tendering job over 10 years without even counting; an aimless, mindless and numb good guy, also suffered depression subconsciously like a walking stiff not even realized it. These two lonely characters facing their own lives day in and day out until they met in the bar where the deadbeat bar tender working at night.

A very subtle screenplay expertly portrayed the lives of the young generation who lost by their own choices as adults, a hollow, uninspired, boring formula to go on with their lives, trapped inside yet never thought trying a bit harder to get out of it.

Great casting jobs for both of the leading roles, nice and simple dialog that so smoothly attached with and to the characters. A very one-directional scenario and evenly developed storyline but never became boring at all, with the help of great cinematography, subtle soundtrack, unpretentious trendy young generation dialog. A great treat to your own loneliness you are facing daily.

Highly recommended.

A film about young Zeroes meandering through life.

[buttyfrench · 1/10 · 27 April 2017]

The two leads in this film are likable actors with very little to act in this shell of a character study. We all have friends like these two, they the lifeless slot fillers at parties and gatherings. The story goes off into the Disingenuous Zone by suddenly revealing that she is a well known somebody. Geez, she is such a nothing that I refuse to believe that she even knows how to use a pay toilet with a coin door. He is the quintessential Failure-to-Launch... nothing new. So little happens in this film that I am left to wonder if the story was improvised after they began shooting. Watching these two recite the dialog was painful. Her character has some very wacky views about, well, the entire world. Me, I just cannot go on any longer about this piece of crap movie. Signing out....

What?

[crackerjackusher · 1/10 · 29 August 2018]

Congratulations to the filmmakers for getting this garbage produced. Too bad it was terrible.

Thoughtful Character Studies

[lavatch · 8/10 · 1 September 2018]

"Fallen Stars" has a special appeal in the simplicity of the relationship that slowly evolves between two reticent people. A bartender and a writer meet in the restaurant-tavern called the Club Tee Yee. They form a tacit bonding. The film is a subtle exploration of this improbable relationship.

The photography and musical score were effective in providing the backdrop for what is a series repetitive scenes where Cooper and Daisy go on walks and choose not to disclose anything profound about one another. The film captured the extreme vulnerability of both characters.

The performances were superb and were supported by interesting secondary characters, including the crusty restaurant owner, the kind waitress, and the patron who cracked a series of outrageous jokes. The dogs were also wonderful and provide the central metaphor for loneliness and vulnerability felt by the two principal characters.

Throughout the film, the relationship of Cooper and Daisy really wasn't credible, and it did not even seem credible to them. But somehow, the chemistry between them broke through the pattern of withholding emotion. This was an extremely thoughtful and memorable film.

Quiet despair

[cekadah · 10/10 · 24 April 2017]

Most people live in quiet despair wondering just where their lives are going and are they ready for the next challenge.

Here in Fallen Stars we are given a look into the life of two people that have reached that point in life in which a change must take place. But both fear making that change and living their current daily life is just too comfortable to step out of. The loneliness is less of a discomfort than making the move to change their lives.

Cooper (Ryan O'Nan) has been bartender in the same bar for 10 years, Daisy (Michelle Ang) has written a best seller book and is obviously lost for ideas for another book. These two meet and intuitively see the emptiness in each others existence. But opening their heart to another is not an easy thing for them to share.

This wonderful film is quiet and repetitive and withdrawn into itself - just as the two characters are in their life. Writer/directed Brian Jett has created a story that is more reflective of the general public than the general public is willing to admit.

This decade's Lost In Translation

[glindsay34 · 8/10 · 16 March 2017]

If you didn't like Lost In Translation then I'd probably give this a wide berth,

But if you did then this is real joy.

A slow, subtle, but always engaging gem of a film. The two leads were equally outstanding.

Loved it. You probably will too... so long as you were blown away by Lost in Translation.

Fallen Stars is a smaller film with actors unknown to me. Ryan O'Nan and Michelle Ang take a bow. Also, director Brian Jett.

Fallen Stars should make them all rising stars.

A real diversion

[HoosierBob · 8/10 · 29 March 2017]

This is not the usual kind of film for me to watch, but after reading another review, it sounded like a good film, and it is. As described, the film is about a bar tender who meets people at his job and becomes numb to the regulars to the point he is starting to question the challenges of his life. A new face shows up at his bar and over a period of time he tries to force some kind of interaction with the new face...a girl, (who is obviously not interested.) The two eventually go for a walk and without intent, start to learn perceived "personal problems" of each other.

The story is fantastic and the makers of the film worked oh so hard to craft this tale into something the viewer will remember for a long time.

I would recommend this to anybody who has ever tried to gain a friend when they have been lonely in a crowded room.

Mysterious nuanced intimate films still exist in the modern day

[ricdesan · 9/10 · 3 October 2023]

In a perfectly portrayed "living in LA" haze of aimless existence and blasé encounters with our fellow meandering humans, occurs an underwhelming, intricate and uncharacteristic connection that almost seems like it would be impossible in the internet age.

Yet here we are and what unfolds is a character study that plays everything so close to the vest that you are lured in despite a completely fumbling glacial pace. It harkens back to almost a black and white era independent film or something that the South Koreans have mastered in recent years.

Whatever the concoction skilled director Brian Jett has crafted it is so enjoyable to behold and with such powerful yet subdued acting brought by both leads it has us root for these waylaid individuals who are at best a complete mismatch for one another yet is drawn together like we are drawn fully participating in their small adventure in mundane life living.

This movie has such an impact with me not only did I want to review it ... but I will always be eager to watch it again and be reminded of the small life stories that can save us though we know it not.

Amazing

[EliasSadooghiRad · 10/10 · 30 September 2021]

Let me get this straight! This movie is AWESOME!

"Find a meaning for your life They are like most of us.

Delivered simply but resonates profoundly.

[rogopdpc · 8/10 · 29 January 2024]

It's like a 'Red Hot Chili Peppers' song come true. The characters are relatable, and it moves at a delightful pace. You find yourself rooting for the characters, and not necessarily for a Hollywood ending. The isolation and loneliness of ALL the characters is captured so beautifully that when Daisy and Cooper finally start their awkward relationship you feel a sense of relief. I was also angry when Cooper risked their unconventional and fragile relationship with his selfishness. I think what makes this film extra beautiful is the display of courage and open-mindedness' the main characters must display to overcome their loneliness. In a pre-COVID world with sowed division and overtly negative social media, this movie reinforces the need for connections beyond the typical constructs.