MovieChat Forums > Angel Heart (1987) Discussion > Still great after all those years

Still great after all those years

posted 9 years ago by exaybachay84
1 reply | jump to latest

In the early 90s, this was a VHS rental store/late night TV hit flick and one of my personal favourites of that time. Recently I've decided to rewatch it and was astonished how well it has aged. Having seen the fim several times in the past, I've remembered both the plot and the twist but still enjoyed every minute of it.

Overall, it works on multiple levels: detective story, philosophical tale, study on memory and identity. Harry Angel might be an archetypical private eye in the vein of Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade and Lew Archer/Harper, but his case is rather metaphysical. It's no longer concrete jungle that he's exploring - it's Hell itself.

And yet the mood of this stylish film stays genuinely creepy without being in-your-face. De Niro's portrayal of Lucifer is very well-balanced (unlike Pacino's over-the-top role in "Devil's Advocate") and chilling at the same time. Rourke is also great as a tough, street-wise PI caught in the eye of evil forces at large.

It seems that "Angel Heart" was quite an influence (in terms of themes and atmosphere) on "Jacob's Ladder", "Seven", "Fallen", "Frailty", "The Prophecy" and some other thrillers that came later. Such a fantastic piece of noirish-supernatural cinema. They don't do them like that anymore, do they?

Do you have any tobacco?

[–] Binkconn 8 years ago

The cinematography is also remarkable, the same DP Parker often used in his films of that era (i.e. "Fame" - Michael Sarrazin?), that beautiful capturing of natural light. What sets it apart from the fairly ordinary-looking copycat thrillers you mentioned.

Parker on the commentary said there's tons of extra footage of the scene where De Niro and Rourke first meet, their improvisation with the script. Be fascinating to see that released someday (one of the few De Niro roles where he actually bothers crafting a character rather than the usual 'staring, muttering' *beep* he plays).