Documentarian Rory Kennedy’s follow-up, “Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing,” revisits Boeing’s safety crisis and updates the story since her 2022 documentary “Downfall.” The film focuses on developments that, according to reviewers, offer little reassurance about whether Boeing’s safety and corporate accountability problems have been fully resolved.
Across coverage, outlets describe the sequel as returning to allegations that a profit-driven culture and inadequate oversight contributed to deadly outcomes, including the crashes highlighted in the earlier film. The Guardian additionally underscores that events since 2022 include an incident involving a plane door blowing out mid-flight and the emergence of more whistleblowers. It also points to the March 2024 death of John Barnett, a Boeing whistleblower and contributor to the first documentary, whose death is reported as ruled a suicide by investigators.
The New York Times review frames the film as a “reckoning” grounded in ongoing “flight risks,” while emphasizing that the updates do not significantly ease concerns raised in the earlier documentary. Together, the reviews present “Freefall” as a continuation of the investigation into Boeing and the role of regulators, including the FAA, without indicating resolution.
