Customer Reviews

Angel's Dance

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

[A slightly modified version of this review was originally posted to the alt.tv.twin-peaks newsgroup in Feb '99 because Sheryl Lee starred as the murdered prom queen Laura Palmer in the "Twin Peaks" TV series and prequel movie.]

This comedy-thriller stars Sheryl Lee, Jim Belushi, and Kyle Chandler (from the TV show "Inside Edition").

It is an absolutely wonderful film that showcases Sheryl's acting in a way that none of her films has since "Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me." Her character, Angel, goes through a series of transformations that is astonishing, hilarious, and touching. If the film had gotten a major theatrical release, it could have been the "breakthrough" role that would have made a lot of critics and moviegoers recognize her real talent.

It is also that rare thing: a funny *and* intelligent thriller that not only shatters movie cliches, but keeps the viewer engaged for the entire length of the movie.

School for Assassins

The story opens on the streets of Chicago, where a businessman is being stalked by a mob hitman. Just as he is about to strike, the hitman is run over by a truck! We learn that the businessman is the former accountant for the mob boss, Uncle Vinny (Jon Polito of "Miller's Crossing"), and he is entering the witness protection program in order to testify against Vinny.

A new hitman is needed pronto, and Tony Greco (Kyle Chandler), who once took a bullet to protect another mobster, is elected. Tony is sent to California to train with Stevie Rosellini (Jim Belushi), the most-feared assassin in the country. But Stevie turns out to be a laid-back California dude who lives on the beach and quotes Nietzche, so there is plenty of humor involving the clash between their personal styles and values.

After training Tony for a while, Stevie reveals the final test Tony must pass before he can return to Chicago--killing an innocent victim selected at random from the phone book. The victim selected is Angel Chaste (Sheryl Lee), who turns out to be a mortician at a funeral parlor.

As Stevie and Tony start tailing Angel, they learn that her life is a bit more complicated that it appears. When Angel discovers what is going on, she uses her intelligence and wit and turns into a far more formidable target than the assassins ever encountered. I won't reveal any more of the plot, as there are several delicious surprises and twists, and an ending that had the audience cheering when I first saw it at as the opening night film for the '99 Cinequest Film Festival.

Surprising Production Qualities

In addition to Sheryl Lee's superb performance, Jim Belushi is dead-on in his portrayal of Stevie. In a question and answer session after the screening, the writer/director David Corley revealed that Belushi was his first choice for the part, and how he fought with the producers to get Sheryl Lee for Angel after seeing her performance in "Backbeat."

Corley also told of the five-year struggle to get funding for the film, and the reluctance of the Hollywood studios to finance a film with such a strong and quirky female lead character. This time allowed him to hone and perfect the script, however, and the film is perfectly paced for its 102 minutes. The musical score and cinematography are also impressive for a first feature effort. Corley's prior experience was producing industrial films for Silicon Valley companies and running a video rental store. One can only imagine that he watched a *lot* of videos to come up with a script this original!

Unfortunately, the film did not acquire a US theatrical distributor, was bought by HBO, aired a few times on cable with minimal promotion, and was then released to video.

Don't miss this "hidden treasure"!

I started watching this movie by accident. I was sitting with two friends when we watched the scene with the bowling pins and the handgun. My friend fell out of his chair and I could not speak for several minutes. We had never seen the violence of a repressed bowler rendered in such elegant detail. After this, the movie transitions from scene to scene with an almost Zen-like abandon. Violence melts into lovemaking; libraries turn into war zones. Best of all, Belushi inhabits his character like a genie in a lamp. Somehow he finds a way to make the audience feel as though he is always just about to break into a flurry of karate moves. I'm not going to tell you if he ever unleashes his karate, but I will say that he was born to play this role.

The fascinating interaction of a master hit-gentleman and an unsuccessful apprentice hit-man and a self-taught very talented hit-lady. Well worth viewng more than once!

Very enjoyable film that actually managed to surprise me. Manages to go a bit beyond the standard hitman fare. What did it for me most of all though was the ending which I won't spoil.

Although the movie had an unremarkable start, by the time the last scene was fading from view I was wishing for more. Sheryl Lee's performance is delightfully quirky as she transforms from reclusive bookworm and morgue attendant working the graveyard shift to...well, you'll see! Jim Belushi, always enjoyable, plays the vegetarian uber-mechanic/guru teaching the mostly befuddled mook played engagingly by Kyle Chandler. The state of mind I had by the end of the movie reminded me a great deal of how I felt after watching Angela Jones delicious performance in Curdled but without the excess body fluids. Very satisfying ending!

If you have ever seen Early Edition, you will definitely love this movie. Early Edition was a Saturday night drama starring Klye Chandler as Gary Hobson. - A guy who gets tommorows newspaper, today. He used this fortune telling information to save people's lives. And since Klye Chandler is such a talented actor, he transformed Gary Hobson from a cardboard superheroe to a real human being, who people enjoyed watching for the last four seasons. Unfortunately this great show was cancelled at the end of this season (2000), but you can still catch this talented Actor in Angel's Dance.

AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS MOVIE, THE FEMALE ACTRESS REALLY LOOKED LIKE A LOSER... MAYBE ... BECAUSE SHE WAS A LOSER! SHE HAD A DEAD-END JOB, HER ONLY FAMILY MEMBER WAS DYING, ETC.
SHE, HERSELF FELT THAT SHE WAS A MAJOR LOSER. SO MUCH IN FACT THAT SHE TRIED TO KILL HERSELF.
BUT A TWIST OF FATE TURNS THIS "LOSER", INTO A POLISHED PROFESSIONAL AND PRETTY "WINNER". I AM NOT TELLING YOU HOW THIS HAPPENS BUT THE WAY THIS TRANSFORMATION IS SUPPOSED TO HAVE HAPPENED IS WELL-THOUGHT OUT AND BELIEVABLE.
FOLKS, IF YOU ARE THINKING OF BUYING THIS MOVIE, LET ME TELL YOU THAT YOU WILL NOT BE DESAPOINTED. IT IS VERY ENTERTAINING, WELL ACTED, AND OVERALL A WONDEFUL MOVIE.
ENJOY!

James Belushi and Sheryl Lee are quite good in their roles. The movie is an action comedy, and there are a lot of funny moments. The story is funny and unpredictable in the end, James Belushi is hilarious and Sheryl Lee is the film`s main atraction, she`s prouving here that she`s a talented actress without taking her dress off. And the end of the film is taking you by surprise.

I,ve seen this movie several times on cable, directtv and netflix. My only prolem was that I always thought it was cropped for tv, but now looking at the listing on amazon it seems as though it was shot in 1.33:1 so there is no widescreen version. That being said, I still fully intend to buy this film as it is absolutely delightful and entertaining every time I watch it Sheryl Lee, James Belushi and Kyle Chandler do a wonderful job in their parts.

I wish I could remember back to how we stumbled onto this little gem. Very few people seem to know about it. It doesn't fit neatly into any of the usual categories, being a quirky mix of action and comedy that takes it's sweet time getting going. You get hints from the very beginning during the bowling alley sequence that this ride will be a little bit different from the usual, and it just continues to surprise when Tony discovers that the slob of a chauffeur is much more than he appears. Not a movie for all tastes, but definitely worth watching more than once.