Based on Lauren Kate's novel of the same name released in 2009, the film seems to be more complex, embracing reincarnation, fallen angels and, of course, forbidden love.

Fallen follows Lucinda “Luce” Price (Addison Timlin), who always feels there is something wrong with her because she often sees shadows that are invisible to others. Following one incident, she later moved to Sword and Cross reform school in Georgia, US, where she meets other students, including Arriane, Roland, Penn, Molly, Gabbe, Todd, the teacher Ms. Sophiathe and the charming Cameron “Cam” Briel (Harrison Gilbertson). However, Luce’s attention is drawn to the mysterious Daniel Grigori (Jeremy Irvine), who always avoids her although Luce thinks he seems oddly familiar to her, as if they have met before.

Luce quickly befriends Penn, who admits to having access to all student data. She is also the first person who knows about Luce’s past, especially the part that made her decide to move to Sword and Cross. Meanwhile, Cam seems to be interested in Luce; he congratulates her on her birthday, presenting her with a beautiful goth dress, and takes her to a bar. However, Luce’s feelings are always for Daniel, although he tells Luce that he has fallen in love with another girl. Luce’s ability to see shadows also gets "worse" once she steps into the school.

(Read also: 'Allied' a charming movie with unexpected ending)

The climax begins when Luce tries to discover Daniel’s past and he finally reveals who he truly is, as well as some other students. They are actually angels; some of them have chosen to stay with God, while others prefer to be with Lucifer. Nevertheless, unlike other angels, Daniel refuses to choose and insists on taking the side of love, which is Luce. Daniel is then cursed for what he believes in, resulting in his lover vanishing into fire once he gives her a kiss and every 17 years she will reincarnate into the world, which means Daniel has to witness her birth and death every single time.

There has been films and books about fallen angels and their forbidden love with humans and Fallen is no exception in embracing this theme. Since the beginning, the movie offers a convincing setting, such as the Sword and Cross school with its gloomy atmosphere. The cast is also quite successful in portraying the characters, especially Cam who immediately grabbed the audience's attention.

However, since the film is quite fast-paced, those who never read the book may feel a little bit confused. The characters are not introduced well, so the viewers may find them unrelatable. For instance, the audience may find it hard to fathom which angels take God's side and which do not. Some of the scenes are also too jumpy; one scene shows Luce in a bar with Cam and Daniel, but in the next one she is already on a motorcycle without any explanation about how or why. 

Nevertheless, the movie is still interesting to watch for fans of this genre, especially readers of the book. (kes)

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