Angel On My Shoulder

Angel On My Shoulder
1946 - United Artists
Directed By Archie Mayo



SYNOPSIS

As soon as gangster Eddie (Paul Muni) is fresh out of prison, he's bumped off by his partner. He finds himself in hell and befriended by a guy named Nick (Claude Rains.) Nick offers him a way back to Earth. He must impersonate and ruin a look-a-like judge. Upon meeting the judge's fiance (Anne Baxter) Eddie has a change of heart and realizes Nick is more than just a minion of hell... he's the boss!



MY THOUGHTS

An enjoyable, entertaining fantasy with some classic actors doing what they do best.

The film is a comedy, but apart from a few good one liners, but is more amusing than hilarious.

Angel On My Shoulder clearly has a low budget. The 'ghost' effects are simple. Hell is also simply shot. It's very very dark and shadowy, except for fire and smoke. It's more of an impressionistic version of hell then we would see if the film were made today with CGI technology. This low-tech, cheap approach doesn't affect the film's quality. It forces your focus toward the actors.

The three lead performances are strong, and are cast to type. Claude Rains is the standout. He's perfectly cast as the devil... probably the best actor ever I could think of for the role. He brings humor, a twinkle in the eye, along with a fair share of menace to the role.

Muni is sympathetic, even though we know initially he's a bad guy. He becomes even more so as he transforms into a good guy and makes the important decision at the film's climax. The role doesn't need his dramatic chops that he showed in Scarface, The Life of Emile Zola, or I Am a Fugitive From A Chain Gang, but he is great and the performance is nearly as strong as those benchmarks.

Anne Baxter initially seems like a weak choice, but the more you get to know her character, the more you feel for her.

Nothing else about the film is unusual or groundbreaking. The familiarity of everything is comforting, without it feeling like you've 'been there, done that.' The film still holds up well over 60 years later.