Angel Face (1952)
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Movie Info
Cast
as Diane Tremayne Jessup
as Frank Jessup
as Mary Wilton
as Mr. Charles Tremayne
as Fred Barrett
as Mrs. Catherine Tremayne
as Bill Crompton
as Arthur Vance
as The judge
as Miller
as Juror
as DA Judson
as Barrett's Secretary
as Man
as Lewis, Frank's Attorney
as Satsuma
as Matron
as Waitress
as Harry
as Doctor
as Police Sergeant
as Reporter
as Assistant District Attorney
as Reporter
as Bailiff
as Court Clerk
as Man
as Deputy Sheriff
as Prison Chaplain
as Patient
as Nurse Theresa
as Jury Foreman
as Policeman
as Secretary
as Detective
as Man
as Man
as Woman
as Good Humor Man
as TV Broadcaster
as Brady
Critic Reviews for Angel Face
All Critics (10) | Top Critics (3) | Fresh (8) | Rotten (2) | DVD (2)
A capable cast, headed by Jean Simmons and Robert Mitchum, and a nice, taut story idea have been set adrift in a pretentious Freudian mist that wafts through the handsomely mounted proceedings with disastrous results.
Superb Freudian crime thriller, noir-inflected in theme but shot by and large in crisp, bright drawing-rooms.
The sets, characters, and actions are extremely stylized, yet Preminger's moving camera gives them a frightening unity and fluidity, tracing a straight, clean line to a cliff top for one of the most audacious endings in film history.
Preminger transforms a second rate James M. Cain murder plot, re-orchestrating this textbook tale of passion and murder into a haunting and haunted refrain
For all of its unbelievability, Angel Face is consistently suspenseful under Preminger's sure direction. In short, you're never sure what that crazy woman will do next.
One of the best yet still underestimated film noir, boasting gloriously detailed mise-en-scene from Otto Preminger and a revelatory performance by the cast-against- type Jean Simmons as a murderess femme fatale.
Audience Reviews for Angel Face
An ordinary man gets mixed up with a dangerous girl. Not anything new, but it's a good movie with good actors.
Super Reviewer
Robert Mitchum plays Frank, an ambulance driver with dreams of opening a sports car repair shop. He has a very pretty girlfriend (Mona Freeman) that he treats very casually, especially when he meets other hot dames. One night, on a call at a ritzy mansion, he discovers what is obviously a plot by a wealthy socialite to kill her stepmother. However, he's a little bit intrigued by the socialite (Jean Simmons), and she seems more than a little interested in her, so he takes her out. Soon, Frank's life is filled with promises of money and it seems as though his dreams will all come true, if only he can turn the other way for a little while. Director Otto Preminger uses the Hays code to his advantage as the twists and turns of this crime drama unfold. While Mitchum isn't exactly oozing charisma (and Simmons' socialite perhaps oozes too much), the end result is something entirely fascinating to watch. Is Mona Freeman's no-nonsense character a proto-feminist? She sees Simmons' little plots and ploys very early on, and has the nerve to call her out on them. I also think the courtroom scenes deserve a lot credit. I enjoyed the interplay between the two lawyers, and Leon Ames breaks ground he'd later revisit in The Postman Always Rings Twice (as an exceedingly clever lawyer). A great example of the genre from the 1950s.
Super Reviewer
Oh, I dug this. Preminger delivers solid Beverly Hills noir with a dollop of Freudian melodrama. Mitchum is great as a super cynical "I'm wise to you" pragmatist who still winds up taking the fall for the nutty dame. Nutty dames...
Super Reviewer
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