Angel (1982)
Angel is not a tightly-written drama with clever twists. The story progresses in a haphazard manner, meandering along to ponderous saxophone solos. In the first fifteen minutes the plot is set in an opening sequence at a dance hall where Danny's band is set to play. As the band is unloading their gear Danny plays the saxophone and a teenage girl walks up and watches him. She doesn't speak and her manner is strange. Danny ends up buying her a ticket for his show. During the show we are introduced to a few others characters, but it's unclear how they fit into the plot.
After the show the teenage girl finds Danny in his dressing room. She draws him out into the night. She tries to kiss him but he says she's too young. Nevertheless, he stays with her a while talking to her, during which time he realizes that she is deaf. Meanwhile Danny's manager is back at the dance hall waiting to give Danny a ride. Suddenly, some masked gunmen pull up and shoot the manager, saying this is what he gets for paying protection money. The deaf girl sees what happens and runs toward the dance hall. The gunmen shoot her as well and then blow up the dance hall. Danny witnesses it all from a hiding place.
This sets Danny on his quest for revenge. The police question him but all he can remember is the shoes on one of the killers. Nevertheless, this clue causes him to stumble across the killer by accident. He decides to take matters into his own hands rather than go to the police. He follows the killer home, breaks into his house where he finds a gun, and then shoots him down when he comes home. This puts in motion a series of events in which Danny eventually finds all of the killers and avenges the murders of the deaf girl and manager. In the meantime, Danny slowly loses his mind as his obsession for justice consumes him. He finds himself alienating the singer in his band with whom he is romantically involved.
As I said before, the story is not a carefully crafted mystery. At times it doesn't seem to make sense how Danny knows he's found the correct person. He jumps to quick conclusions based upon scant evidence and just happens to be right. Some viewers might find this unsatisfying. What really makes Angel stand out is the style. Each shot is carefully crafted with lush colors and superb lighting. The gritty realistic setting of 1980s Ireland is a perfect landscape for Danny's unfolding nightmare. The music is also quite good, both the saxophone score and the numerous pop songs performed by Danny's band throughout the film.
One thing that I found confusing was who exactly the villains were meant to be. We know that they punished the band manager for paying protection money, but protection money for what? And why would someone else be unhappy about protection money? Usually protection money involves the person getting paid off promising not to do any harm. I couldn't help but wonder if this had something to do with the IRA and if there are political undertones. It's never explicitly stated but perhaps Irish audiences at the time would have been keyed into what was happening.
At one point in the film the lead investigator confides in Danny that he's Jewish. Danny responds by saying, "Are you a Catholic Jew or a Protestant Jew?" This seems to suggest that there is something political going on and the investigator wants to assure Danny that he is neutral when it comes to politics. Later on, when the investigator suspects that Danny is behind the murders of prime suspects he appears to let on that he knows, telling Danny, "There are some places where you can go that I cannot." This also suggests that there is something more to this than a simple criminal gang investigation.
As Danny proceeds in his quest there are a number of spiritual symbols. The film's title, Angel, comes from a statement where a woman tells him, "You know how all men are, they start out as angels and end up as brutes." In Danny's case he transforms from an artist to a killer. He even carries around a firearm in his saxophone case. Yet, though Danny is now a killer it would seem that there is a sense of justice in his actions, as though he is guided by providence. Perhaps this is meant to symbolize the Irish struggle for independence against the British, which some would argue required violence and terrorism? Just a thought.
In the final scene, Danny returns to the burnt out dance hall where he finds a trailer filled with religious iconography parked outside. The "seventh son of a seventh son" has set up shop as a faith healer offering people blessings for a price. Danny goes inside without paying and when he approaches for his blessing he collapses. Upon arising a man walks up behind him. It is one of the other police officers on the case, who is apparently the final killer Danny has been seeking, a symbol of corrupt power. This man has been seeking out Danny, but has in fact sealed his own fate to justice.
The corrupt officer takes Danny into the wreckage of the dance hall and points a gun at him. At the moment before he shoots him he asks, "Do you believe in miracles?" and Danny replies "Yes." Then a gunshot goes off but it's Danny's would-be killer who falls to ground. The Jewish investigator has sneaked up and shot him in the back. He and Danny exit the ruined structure leaving the body behind with the camera lingering on refuse blowing in the wind, apparently coming from a helicopter outside.
Now that I've spoiled the whole movie for you, you won't need to watch it yourself. But it's still a lovely little film, and besides, there are a number of other details that I haven't disclosed. One final note, Angel was an alternatively titled Danny Boy. I'm not exactly sure why. Perhaps it was for the America release as the song "Danny Boy", which appears in the film, is sometimes described as the unofficial anthem of Irish Americans. Personally, I like Angel better.
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