Angel Heart - 1987

I decided to give Angel Heart another try. I’d originally seen it back in 1987 when it was released, but at the time I thought it was just “okay”. I really love VooDoo (Vodou) movies like The Serpent and the Rainbow, The Believers, The Skeleton Key and even Live and Let Die. Angel Heart is better than I remember it being, but it’s still kind of a slow flick.

Plot Summary for Angel Heart
Angel Heart is a very atmospheric, good-looking movie set in 1950s New York and New Orleans. Greasy private detective Harry Angel (played by Mickey Rourke) is hired by Louis Cyphre (Robert DeNiro) to find a missing person. According to Cyphre, the missing person owes him a “debt”. Harry Angel is slowly drawn into a world of VooDoo and deception as he tries to track down the missing crooner Johnny Favourite. Along the way, he meets Epiphany Proudfoot (Lisa Bonet) who has ties to all the mystery surrounding Johnny’s disappearance. I can’t say too much about what happens because there are several twists and spoilers suck. So, I will say no one is quite who they seem to be, but if you pay very close attention, the ending won’t be a great surprise.

Memorable Scene from Angel Heart
Probably the blood soaked sex scene between Harry and Epiphany. It’s MTV style editing with a lot of disturbing imagery thrown in for good measure.

Frightening Facts about Angel Heart
If you look closely, you will notice two recognizable faces. Dan Florek appears briefly as Louis Cyphre’s lawyer. You may know him better as Captain Donald Cragen on Law & Order SVU. Almost unrecognizable is Pruitt Taylor Vince as a sidekick cop. I only noticed him because of his crazy, twitching eyes - the same way you will know him. He’s been in everything from X-Files to the movies Identity and Constantine. In Angel Heart, he’s much thinner and has hair, but the eyes are unmistakable!

Director Alan Parker also directed Evita, Pink Floyd’s The Wall, Fame, Midnight Express and other heavy movies. Instead of casting then hot stuff Mickey Rourke, they had first offered the roles to heavyweights Jack Nicholson and Al Pacino. I personally love Mickey Rourke as an actor and thought that he was wonderful in Sin City. Don’t miss his early work because it’s pretty gritty and these days he looks like a completly different person thanks to all those boxing matches.

It Waits

Horror movies don’t really get enough marketing help, particularly in the summer of “The Da Vinci Code”. Therefore, anything I can do to help spread the word is alright with me. To tide me over until “The Omen” releases on 6/6/06, I’ll be watching . . . “It Waits”.

It releases on May 23 and I’ll be doing a full review after that. In the meantime, here’s all you need to know about “It Waits”, which was written by Stephen Cannell (I KNOW you’ve seen the A Team!).

“It Lurks, It Prowls…”

IDT Entertainment’s

Anchor Bay Entertainment Unleashes

“It Waits”

On DVD May 23

TROY , MI – Anchor Bay Entertainment, an IDT Entertainment Company, presents the terrifying story of a dark legend come to life seeking vengeance on mankind. From acclaimed writer/producer Stephen J. Cannell (“A Team”, “Hunter”, “Profit”, “ 21 Jump Street ”) comes… It Waits! Premiering on DVD May 23 rd , 2006 , consumers won’t have to wait any longer to thrill at the extensive bonus features including behind-the-scenes footage and interviews of the cast and writers, in addition to a feature-length audio commentary.

Written by Cannell, Thomas E. Szollosi (“Mythquest”) and Richard Christian Matheson ( Masters of Horror ) and directed by Steven R. Monroe ( House of 9 ), It Waits focuses on a tale taken from Native American folklore of a lost Human Being whose vicious resentments fueled an anger so fierce that its soul was banished from the world of the living. What happens when this malevolent spirit returns – can anyone stop its relentless and destructive powers?

After her best friend is killed in an auto accident in which she was the driver, Forest Ranger Danielle St. Clair (Cerina Vincent – “CSI”, Not Another Teen Movie ) moves into a secluded watchtower in the mountains to bury herself in her work, unaware that something else is buried in the forest. A spirit of the underworld – a victim of its own evil bitterness long entombed in a cave. For a chance to escape and exact its bloody revenge, it waits…

And when accidentally released, the peaceful forest becomes a killing ground. Only Danielle and her fiancé Justin (Dominic Zamprogna, “Battlestar Galactica”) are left to stand up against this ancient nightmare.

Value-added supplements on the It Waits DVD include:

Widescreen Presentation (1.77:1), enhanced for 16×9 TVs

* Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
* “Blood On The Pines” Behind-The-Scenes Featurette
* Feature-length audio commentary with director Steven R. Monroe and star Cerina Vincent
* Trailers

Stephen J. Cannell Productions, Inc. owns the worldwide distribution rights to more than 1,000 hours of Cannell produced series and TV movies. DVD releases from the company’s broadcast hits include “Hunter Season One & Two,” “The Greatest American Hero Seasons One, Two & Three,” “The Commish Season Three” and “Silk Stalkings Season Four.” For more information on Stephen J. Cannell, visit www.cannell.com .

Anchor Bay Entertainment is a recognized name in home entertainment. The company offers an expansive selection of award-winning, notable theatrical films including “Time Bandits” and “Halloween,” classic television programming such as “Roseanne,” “3 rd Rock from the Sun,” “Three’s Company,” “Highlander” and much of the Stephen J. Cannell library, traditional children’s fare featuring the ever-popular Thomas & Friends collection and Mister Rogers Neighborhood, the impressive Manga anime line and chart-topping fitness titles including the “Crunch” and “For Dummies” series. Anchor Bay Entertainment is aggressively developing a wide range of original programs and concepts in addition to licensing existing brands and films.

Anchor Bay Entertainment is a subsidiary of IDT Entertainment. IDT Entertainment is a vertically integrated entertainment company that develops, produces, and distributes proprietary and licensed entertainment content.

The Omen Redux

I normally don’t dig the fact that Hollywood is so unoriginal that most horror movies these days are remakes. I AM tickled though that this year, we have a 6/6/6 on our calendar and it didn’t miss someone in the marketing department with a sense of humor. “The Omen” remake is releasing that day. I like the original series quite a bit and this kid seems creepy enough to make a good Damien. And personally, there are NEVER too many stories about Satan, the spawn of Satan or what it’s like in Hell.

And guess what? Only seven months until Halloween . . .