Kirk Douglas defended his son Michael and the film "Falling Down" in a newspaper opinion piece, answering complaints about the disturbing story of a laid-off defense worker who goes berserk.
"In `Falling Down' he had the guts to play a prejudiced, middle-age nerd," Douglas wrote in Monday's Los Angeles Times. "He played it brilliantly. I think it is his best piece of work to date."The movie has come under attack from defense industry officials and from Korean-Americans, who objected to a scene in which Michael Douglas' character attacks a Korean-American grocer for charging high prices.
The elder Douglas said critics who claim "Falling Down" glorifies lawbreaking are missing the point.
"Michael's character is not the `hero,' or `newest urban icon,' " Douglas wrote. "He is the villain and the victim.
"Of course, we see many elements of our society that contributed to his madness. We even pity him. But the movie never condones his actions."