Angel Heart

A devilish film that lacks a little more audience appeal and dynamism for my taste. However, Alan Parker does a spectacular job, he perfectly builds the atmosphere, skillfully manages the lighting, and keeps the viewer in suspense throughout, leaving you unsure of what will happen in the next five minutes. The script is good enough (perhaps a bit too convoluted) and culminates in a shocking twist, which thankfully really works. (25/09/2005)

Alan Parker lent his unmistakable, darkly depressing signature to the film, which is teeming with mysterious religious practices, strange deaths, and, last but not least, "strange" people. The rawness of the ritualistic murders, depicted without any sugarcoating, and sparing no artificial blood, is definitely not gratuitous but rather serves as a means to bring closure to the captivating plot for the audience. The film is filled with tension, captivation, and, last but not least, a "pleasant" surprise at the end. Mickey Rourke's striking performance unfortunately pales in comparison to the minimal yet emotionally powerful portrayal by Robert De Niro, who, with his full beard, long nails, hair in a bun, and a cane in hand, looks like... Unreserved satisfaction. (25/09/2005)

Excellent psycho thriller on the border of horror and noir detective with top-notch cast and professional smart direction. Besides the movie Omen, my favorite film with satanic theme. Dark atmosphere created mainly by innovative excellent camera, with typical views of the night streets lashed by rain. The movie features a lot of voodoo ritual elements, and over time, it practically doesn't lose anything, unlike many other titles, it adds to the quality of this film. Probably Mickey Rourke's best performance in his career so far. Angel Heart is a film about how the protagonist descends into hell and touches the very bottom of his mental and physical strength by accepting one job. Overall impression: 95%. (30/06/2007)

The jazz-filled atmosphere of Noir York as a perfect introduction and the disturbing voodoo flood as a strongly negative contrast. With mysterious thrillers, I simply expect more balance, and the crescendoing punctuation, as impressive and perfectly precise as it may be, is not enough for me. The perfectly stylized depression loses narrowly to the unnecessarily overdone Louisiana. 70% (21/12/2009)

A good thriller that gets a mysterious touch in the middle and by the end slides into horror. The story is not exactly packed with action, it moves forward rather slowly to reveal a surprising twist at the end, and it is really surprising. Formally, I don’t think there’s anything to reproach, but the film didn’t win my heart because voodoo is a topic that I don’t care much for, and that prevents a full score. (10/05/2008)