Angel's Dance

Jim Belushi's movie to carry, it appears, but what it slowly becomes is a character portrait of the rebirth of a lost soul. Sheryl Lee as 'Angel', at first somewhat amusing as an eccentric mortician, becomes the real center of the film in her transformation from freaked-out ditz to a woman in control of her own destiny. I found her character fascinating, and the interplay between her and Belushi is like watching a dance with strangers evolve into an odd interplay of almost-love. Detached from the get-go, that same detachment carries Angel through to the end. And it's Belushi's character, the "Rose", who gets sucked up in the surprising finale. Quite frankly, this is a good watch.

I don't know why movies with Jim Belushi don't get more attention when they come out. After I watched Angel's Dance I tried to remember a truly bad Jim Belushi movie, but I couldn't think of anything he's done that I didn't at least enjoy. Well, K-9, maybe, and there was a sort of time travel one where he was a real villain – not like the part he has in Angel's Dance – and I didn't like him playing a bad guy. Otherwise I think its safe to say: if Jim Belushi is in a movie it's probably worth seeing.

Angel's Dance also gives us Sheryl Lee in a quirky, funny role that fits her like her body armor. Belushi is the slickest hit man in the business, living on the beach in LA and engaged to train a new guy for a hit Uncle Vinnie needs done in Chicago on a protected witness. The new guy (Kyle Chandler) has to put up with Belushi's Zen training method, and do a hit on a randomly picked victim named Angelica Chaste, played by Lee. Angelica is a very whacked out mortician who doesn't take kindly to being assassinated and decides to defend herself. From there the plot is lightweight, but intelligent, and there are some good laughs and enough action to keep it moving fast.

Belushi is a very funny guy! (Oh, and there's a small but lovable bit by Jon Polito as Uncle Vinnie in the first reel.)

Writer and director David L. Corley has two other films credited here at IMDb, but I've seen them both and the others don't measure up to Angel's Dance.

David L. Corley's 'Angel's Dance' is an underrated quirky dark comedy. The screenplay is refreshing. The writing is quite clever and the humour is a delight. I enjoyed the twists and turns and the element of suspense is very well maintained. I only thought that Angel's transition in the end was a little drastic and the writer could have elaborated more here. 'Angel's Dance' is quite high in erotic quotient even though there are very few nude scenes. I can completely understand why Tony was infatuated by Angel. The principle cast, Jim Belushi, Kyle Chandler and Sheryl Lee are terrific. Jim Belushi performs naturally as the laidback hit-man and Kyle Chandler is equally brilliant as Stevie's impatient and unwilling-to-follow-instructions apprentice. There are only very few actresses who can play vulnerable, seductive and insane as convincingly as Sheryl Lee. The film is made within a modest budget. As such the execution is decent. Yet, the performances, writing and direction makes 'Angel's Dance' an enjoyable rainy day or late summer night choice.

Well... I guess there can be something said for an HBO "free preview"! I caught this film totally by accident during one of HBO's free weekends. I must agree with the other users, that the film did lag a bit in the beginning. But being a Jim Belushi fan, I decided to stick it out. I was NOT disappointed! Although the acting was far from academy award quality, Belushi and a very well written script continued to hold my attention. If you get a chance to catch this one, DO IT! It's really well worth it!

There are any number of movies that are worth watching. There is a smaller number of movies that are worth watching again. And there are a very few movies that are worth watching over and over. "Angel's Dance" is one of those movies.This is due to imaginative writing and fine performances turned in by Jim Belushi, as the professional hit-man trying to train a mafia soldier to do wetwork, and Sheryl Lee, as the introverted, isolated woman who is supposed to be the apprentice's final exam. Nothing goes as planned for the assassins, as their intended victim reacts unpredictably and lethally to their efforts. As miserable and lonely as her life may be, she isn't at all ready to give it up yet.

The movie has plenty of little surprises in it, yet none of them feel contrived. This is a movie you can safely pop into the VCR or DVD player on a rainy day and be assured of an entertaining ride, even if the ending isn't exactly a happily-ever-after one.