Falling Angels

Mary dies, shattering the quiet domestic life the Fields have maintained. Jim's volatile control intensifies and the daughters must shoulder more of the burden in the wake of her loss. The funeral becomes a focal point that exposes the cracks in the family.

The film bookends its narrative with water flowing over Niagara Falls, signaling cycles of endings and beginnings. It uses loops and flashbacks to move between past and present, often returning to the Falls as a visual refrain. The motif reminds the family that some secrets resist closure.

A flashback shows Jim forcing the family to endure two weeks trapped in his self-built backyard bomb shelter for 'practice'. The episode reveals his need for control and the thrill of power at the expense of others. It hints at how such tactics echo in his daily life.

In the present, Jim is a used-car salesman who projects a calm, respectable image while drinking heavily and cheating on Mary. He keeps a tight grip on the family, insisting the girls watch over their mother at all times. The tension between outward appearances and private chaos drives the household's fragility.

Mary has retreated into a catatonic life on the living room couch, steadily fueled by whiskey and coffee. She remains physically present but emotionally distant, a silent anchor for the family’s decline. Her somber withdrawal shapes how the daughters navigate their duties.

Norma, the eldest, quietly carries most of the household chores and cares for her mother. She yearns to remember her missing brother and is determined to learn what happened to Jimmy. Her restraint hides a deep, unresolved grief and a stubborn pursuit of truth.

Norma unexpectedly befriends a neighbor girl, which brings a spark of normalcy into the Field house. The new friendship offers a glimpse of a life beyond chores and secrecy. It hints at the possibility of healing through connection.

Lou pushes against her father’s authority and embraces independence, experimenting with romance and drugs. Her defiance contrasts with Norma's restraint and Sandy's naivety. The rebellion expands the fault lines within the family.

Sandy pursues a romance with an older, married shoe salesman. The relationship leads to an awkward threesome with the man's twin brother, and Sandy discovers she is pregnant. The pregnancy becomes a painful symbol of the family's unspoken desires and risks.

The community’s suspicion about Jimmy’s death resurfaces when a newspaper clipping Mary kept is found. Norma seizes on this fragment to probe the past, pulling the family toward a reckoning. The new information disrupts the fragile balance they have maintained.

On a long New Year’s Eve night, a dramatic event forces the Field family to confront the embedded secret fully. The admission about Jimmy shatters the front they have maintained and exposes the raw nerves beneath the surface. Each daughter faces the possibility of rebuilding their lives from scratch.

With the secret out, the Fields must decide whether they can repair their bonds or drift further apart. The film leaves the outcome unresolved, inviting viewers to imagine possible futures for healing. The drama emphasizes the cost of lies and the fragility of family ties.

The final shot returns to Niagara Falls, reinforcing the loop between endings and beginnings. The falls symbolize both closure and the possibility of renewal for the surviving family members. The audience is left with a quiet, ambiguous sense of what lies ahead.

The narrative circles back to its core secrets, leaving Jimmy, Mary, and the daughters in a state of uncertain future. The film underscores how truth, once surfaced, reshapes a family’s future and how hard it is to rebuild trust. It ends with a sense of fragile possibility rather than resolution.