Directed by:
Otto Preminger
Starring:
Alice Faye ………. June Mills
Dana Andrews ………. Eric Stanton
Linda Darnell ………. Stella
Charles Bickford ………. Mark Judd
Anne Revere ………. Clara Mills
Bruce Cabot ………. Dave Atkins
John Carradine ………. Professor Madley
Percy Kilbride ………. Pop
20th Century Fox presents Fallen Angel. Written by Harry Kleiner based on the novel by Marty Holland. Running time: 97 minutes. NOT RATED. Available on DVD: March 7, 2006.
Finally we get in to some bona fide noir. A film strictly about character conflicts, a murder, a femme fetal, photography that uses shadows and lighting beautifully, a true film that captures the art and style of film noir. Fallen Angel is constantly compared to Laura, and many of those people aren’t completely wrong in their saying so. After the success of Laura Fox almost immediately began setting up Fallen Angel and by reuniting the director and most of the cast & crew from Laura they were clearly attempting to make lightning strike twice. While the other films in the recent batch have their moments Fallen Angel not only is a good movie, but has the most “universal appeal” of the three.
Fallen Angel is the story of a drifter con man by the name of Eric Stanton who travels from town to town not quite looking for that big score but just to find enough to get by and travel on to his next destination. When his funds are at a point where he can no longer move forward he stops in the small town of Walton in California near San Francisco looking to make some fast cash. He hooks up with a Professor Madley who much like him goes from town to town laying his con on the communities to sucker them out of money, only Madley uses his bogus spook show as a front. Basically he does exactly what John Edwards does, go from place to place preying on innocent and naive minds.
But there’s something keeping Stanton from leaving the small town, after stopping off in a local dinner looking for some coffee and perhaps something to eat he gets his first look at Stella. Stella is the definition of a femme fetal, she’s got every man in town wrapped around her little finger and she’s smart enough to know how to use that power in her favor. Stanton is just another victim falling head over heels for her. Within moments he knows he wants to marry this girl, and he knows that she wants a family life, but only with a an who can provide a house and a loving relationship. So now Stanton knows what he has to do in order to win her over.
Enter June Mills, one of two sisters who are in possession of a tidy sum of money -$25,000 to be exact – and Stanton will use all of his smooth maneuvers to get what he wants. June is so innocent that she actually believes all of the words coming from Stantons mouth and begins to think there may be a future together after all. But shortly a murder occurs and Stanton becomes the prime suspect prompting him to flee town with June and figure out who is responsible for the foul play before he finds himself behind bars.
Otto Preminger who directed the film has a very fluid style when it comes to film making, he uses the camera so well at times we forget it’s a movie we’re watching things are so natural on screen. A key reason for that is Otto’s work of keeping the camera on the characters so we feel as if we’re in the small town of Walton right along side our stars. he also has a nack for single shot scenes that are barely noticeable they’re so seamless. This is an art that today is paraded when directors do it (Scorsese’s diner scene in Goodfellas rings a bell) he does it so well at times you don’t even realize you’ve been watching one single played out shot.
The three leads in the film are certainly a cut above the rest and are yet another piece of the film to praise. Andrews was a man born to play in these types of film where he plays Stanton’s hard boiled attitude to perfection, the way he carries himself is certainly something to be seen. We also can’t forget the lovely Linda Darnell who’s Stella is the type of girl every man can find himself dreaming about. When Stella and Stanton are on screen together it’s as if time stands still they’re so potent together. We also cant forget the return of Alice Faye who after ten years away from the silver screen returned to a much more serious role.
Story: 7/10
Acting: 7.5/10
Look/Feel: 7/10
Originality: 6/10
Entertainment Value: 7.5/10
Total: 35/50
FINAL Score: 7/10
Video:
(Presented in 1.33:1 Fullscreen)
At times the image is a little too washed out where definition is lost and whites tend to bleed. Black levels are for the most part deep and rich with occasional edge enhancements. The story is engaging enough where these rarely become a problem as your more interested in what the characters are saying than how they appear. On a whole the video is handled as best Fox could do with such an old film.
Score: 6/10
Audio:
(English 2.0 Stereo & 1.0 Mono)
The film’s score leave much to be desired which is certainly something frowned upon by noir fans as the score is just as important as the story. The audio comes out clear through the speakers and is more than adequate.
Score: 6/10
Extras:
Feature Length Commentary – Joining Eddie Muller on the commentary track is Susan Andrews daughter of actor Dana Andrews. The track seems off with a two person set-up as it isn’t so much a discussion of the film itself, rather one focusing on Andrews acting ability and his mannerisms. Surely it will please fans of the actor but those who are listening in to hear more about the film you’ll get a few nice morsels of information but not as much as you would hope for when it comes to these commentaries.
Also on the DVD are Three Galleries for Publicity, Production Stills and Unit Photography along with the films Theatrical Trailer.
Score: 5/10
