Angel Heart

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For the unrelated manga and anime, see Angel Heart (manga).
Angel Heart
Directed by Alan Parker
Produced by Elliott Kastner
Alan Marshall
Written by William Hjortsberg
(novel, Falling Angel)
Alan Parker
Starring Mickey Rourke
Robert De Niro
Lisa Bonet
Charlotte Rampling
Music by Trevor Jones
Cinematography Michael Seresin
Distributed by TriStar Pictures
Release date(s) 1987
Running time 113 minutes
Language English
Budget $17,000,000 (estimated)
IMDb profile

Angel Heart is a 1987 horror movie written and directed by Alan Parker, starring Mickey Rourke, Lisa Bonet and Robert De Niro. The film is adapted from the novel Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg, and is generally faithful to the novel, but it has a more somber tone.

A highly atmospheric film, Angel Heart combines elements of film noir, hard-boiled detective stories and horror.

Contents

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Rourke plays Harry Angel, a seedy private investigator in 1955 New York City. Louis Cyphre (De Niro) hires Angel to locate Johnny Favorite, a popular big band crooner who was severely injured in World War II and hospitalized with profound brain damage. Cyphre discovers that the hospital falsified Favorite's records, and wants Angel to find out what happened, as Favorite owed a debt to Cyphre.

But there's more to the case than initially appears, as the debt in question is Favorite's soul, and Cyphre is not human – his very name, Louis Cyphre, is a play on words, sounding like Lucifer when said out loud. His true objective is strongly hinted at by the "egg scene," in which Cyphre eats, with great gusto, an egg – after remarking that in many cultures it represents the soul.

Angel travels to New Orleans as he digs deeper into the case, delving into a world of voodoo and satanism and growing increasingly worried for his own safety and sanity. As Harry Angel discovers more and more of the truth behind Favorite's fate, he experiences flashbacks of satanic rituals, a black mass and a string of murders. He meets Epiphany Proudfoot (Bonet), daughter of a voodoo practitioner who knew Favorite. Notable is the film's disturbing twist ending, in which Angel must finally face the fact that he is Johnny Favorite himself, having abducted and, through a satanic ritual, taken the place and identity of the original Harry Angel, a soldier returning from the war whom he (Favorite) randomly picked off the street. Favorite had promised his soul to the Devil in exchange for worldly success, but then tried to renege by taking the place of another. It is only after he realizes his true identity that Cyphre can claim what is his: Favorite's very soul. Over the end credits, there is a lengthy sequence of Angel descending in a rackety old elevator, apparently on his way to Hell.

Rourke's effective performance anchors the film. DeNiro offers a memorable performance in an atypical role, as a refined but palpably sinister character reportedly based on Martin Scorsese's mannerisms. Charlotte Rampling and blues singer Brownie McGhee are memorable in their rather small roles.

Angel Heart gained attention and controversy even before its release. Bonet was previously known for her role on the family-oriented The Cosby Show, and her extended, graphic and blood-drenched love scene with Rourke required being trimmed of several seconds to secure the film an 'R' rating on initial release.

Some blamed the controversy for Bonet's departure from The Cosby Show, though a few years later she starred in another Cosby-produced program, A Different World.

Angel Heart received mixed reviews, and wasn't especially successful financially, just about breaking even. [1]

After being released on home video, however, Angel Heart became something of a cult film, known for its spooky tone, excellent cinematography (by Michael Seresin), a sad and spooky score (by Trevor Jones), and an unusual but effective blend of genres.

Actor/Actress Role
Mickey Rourke Harry Angel
Robert De Niro Louis Cyphre
Lisa Bonet Epiphany Proudfoot
Charlotte Rampling Margaret Krusemark
Stocker Fontelieu Ethan Krusemark
Brownie McGhee Toots Sweet
Michael Higgins Dr. Albert Fowler
Elizabeth Whitcraft Connie
Eliott Keener Det. Sterne
Charles Gordone Spider Simpson, Bandleader
Dann Florek Herman Winesap
Kathleen Wilhoite Nurse
George Buck Izzy

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