Alan Parker is a difficult director to admire: in addition to his impossibility, his films – still wonderfully produced – are often questionable: his music thriller (“Bucky Malone”, 1976), played by children, is almost unbearable to watch today. His story of escaping from Turkish prisons (“Midnight Express”, 1978) was severely criticized. But what are they missing? A small soul.
Between the classic fantastic and the noir novel
However, with “Angel Heart”, Parker strikes the right tone, somewhere between the classic fantasy and the Nair novel. Private detective Harry Angel is involved in the search for the missing singer. The investigation, funded by patron Louis Cyber, begins in New York and continues in New Orleans. It is scattered with corpses, the hearts of some of them removed with a knife. Gradually, waves of evil occupied the story … we didn’t tell you the rest, you could obviously enjoy it. In particular, the role of Cyber was played by Robert De Niro (Marlon Brando must have stuck to it, but he refused) and Angel Mickey Rourke. This is called cosmetic surgery.
For literary aficionados, keep in mind that the screenplay is taken from William Hortsberg’s novel. The books have not been translated. One of the joys of “Angel Heart” was that the film gained popularity after years of poor selection of decor. Parker, he died in July 2020, with the title of Six Bafta and Commander-in-Chief of the British Empire.
Thursday, August 12 at 8:50 pm at the TCM Cinema. Alan Parker’s American fiction film (1987). With Mickey Rourke, Robert De Niro, Charlotte Rumble, Lisa Bonnet. 1h50 (multicast and on demand).