Common Sense Media Review
By Jennifer Green
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Boeing takedown docu covers air crashes, suicide; language.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
FREEFALL: A RECKONING FOR BOEING investigates the processes inside the company that led to incidents and crashes on Boeing jets for years. Sources include, among others, several Boeing quality investigators who spoke out about the problems but whose complaints were internally squashed or even retaliated against. The film contains audio recordings of one whistleblower who ended up apparently committing suicide under the pressure. His lawyers discuss his case. Families of people who died in Boeing crashes make their case for holding the company accountable.
Is It Any Good?
This Netflix release contains enough firsthand testimony about safety lapses in the construction of Boeing jets to scare off anyone from flying on them. That makes Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing a potential PR nightmare for the airplane giant—and a real draw for viewers, even though it's not Kennedy's first Boeing documentary. Here, she constructs a case of mismanagement and injustice.
But the film doesn't feel like a hit job as the interviewees are mostly men who proudly worked for Boeing until, they say, the culture transformed and their complaints about shoddy work were rebuffed (or, worse, they were punished for speaking out). Interviewees whose loved ones perished in Boeing plane crashes provide poignant testimony about loss that Kennedy contrasts with evidence of financial gain among the corporation's CEOs. The focus and angle are clear here, and the objective is achieved.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what conclusions they draw about Boeing's internal safety processes from Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing. Did you feel the film was an objective analysis? Did you find the sources credible? Why are these aspects important in a documentary?
How have the whistleblowers and family members of victims shown courage and perseverance?
Will this documentary motivate you to choose different flights in the future, considering Boeing workers themselves say they wouldn't fly on the planes they construct? Why or why not?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : August 19, 2026
- Cast : John Barnett , Merle Meyers , Naoise Connolly Ryan
- Director : Rory Kennedy
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Documentary
- Topics : Activism , Family Stories , History , Travel
- Character Strengths : Courage , Perseverance
- Run time : 16 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : some language
- Last updated : August 21, 2026
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