Angel-A

A sweet and unusual love story. Impossibly mismatched couple that work really well. Beautifully filmed and directed as one would expect from Besson. Definitely a piece of retro noir art but with style over substance.

Well worth the watch for a movie with a difference.

I think the first thing that must be discussed about Angel-A is the casting. I'd never heard of either of these actors before watching the movie but they were so perfect for the roles. Having a short hairy Jamel Debbouze as the insecure liar who keeps getting himself into trouble works great, but even better is when he is contrasted with the tall and beautifully statuesque Rie Rasmussen. They are such an odd and unlikely pair that it works for this story. I love their interactions, and the contrast between the two of them. Perhaps even more remarkable is how they show the change in each of them as they spend more time together and start to rub off on one another. The emotional impact of the climax at the end of this film hit me like a ton of bricks, and a lot of that is because Rasmussen and Debbouze play out all that emotion so powerfully. There was also another intense moment earlier in the movie that made me tear up, because of what was happening and how well the actors performed the scene.

There are definitely some fuzzy plot points in this movie, and I was at times a bit confused at how Angela was influencing the people they came in contact with, to do things that are totally out of character. It feels like there would be a lot of people still ready to seek retribution on André, but there are several unexplained magical things going on, so I guess we're just supposed to let that go and assume everything will be fine. I wasn't interested in nitpicking the film too much after I was done watching because it made me feel so good. There is a surprising amount of heart in this story, and I love some of the messages that it teaches. It focuses a great deal on the value of truth, and the power of self-confidence. I'm not sure the ending was perfect, even if it felt good, it didn't play quite right. The conclusion threatened to undermine some of the messaging up to that point. However, when I watch this again, I might appreciate the finale more and see how it ties into the overall themes. And that's the most important point, no matter what flaws I might have seen in the movie, I didn't say "IF I watch this again, " I said "WHEN" because Angel-A is a solid movie that I expect to watch multiple times in the future.

It is very unlike other films, Luk Besson is related with, very few action, lots of dialogs. Not one of the kind you'll enjoy in breaks between portions of popcorn. This movie really touched me with it's honesty. It made me understand little bit more about myself, about the way i treat other people. Not everyone will like it. If you are looking for Taxi-style action - here you won't find anything alike. It's all b&w, and very bright at the same time, 40s style footage. It is about nature of human being, about those weak and strong, about good and evil. It teaches how to love yourself, but without being egoistic. Ant maybe the best thing is, it doesn't only rise a question, but it tries to answer it within the same hour and a half - unlike many movies of this kind (hollywood influence ;)

Angel-A is an easy film to knock. Superficially, there isn't a great deal to endear it to any particular type of audience. For example, there's barely any action, no sex or nudity, there are no big Hollywood stars, it's not sufficiently intellectual to be an 'art-house movie' (despite being black & white!) and, although it has amusing moments, it's hardly a comedy. In addition, the film is only focused on the two main characters and, even then, it's only really about one of them. The remaining participants are (quite deliberately it appears) straightforward stereotypes who allow the simple story to progress. The quality of acting from Rie Rasmussen seems far from impressive but, to be fair, she's not speaking in her native language. Mind you, her awkward portrayal of the titular character seems to work well and she certainly stands out as a 'fish out of water'.

But despite the film's potential short-comings, there are three saving graces that transform Angel-A from a rather average 7 to a brilliant 9 in my eyes: the breathtaking cinematography (thank you Luc Besson), the magnificent casting (Jamel Debbouze is perfect as André) and the heart- warming gentle story (which stayed with me long after the film had finished). In fact, I would go so far as to say that Angel-A could leave you examining your own life and wondering when was the last time you stopped to 'respire and regard' the beautiful world around you and consider how the way you feel about yourself might well have a direct impact on how others treat you.

However, Angel-A is one of those films that you have to be in the right mood to watch. If you don't allow yourself to relax and be drawn into the fairytale, the story can easily fall flat. You also have to give it a chance to get started; the fast-paced dialogue at the beginning makes it hard to watch the pictures at the same time as reading the words (unless you're French of course!). But once Angela enters the frame, the story takes off on a stunningly gorgeous wander around Paris and the way that the tale gently unfolds in the second half of the film is wonderfully touching. There are many moments of outstanding beauty and even the superficially simplistic long-shots of Angela & André crossing the Seine have a mysterious magical quality about them. Actually, the whole film feels slightly unreal; this is partly down to the subject matter but also to the way it was filmed in an almost-empty Paris at odd times of the day.

So, in summary, I love Angel-A. It's one of those films you can watch again and again quite happily and find new insights from each viewing. There are so many scenes that quickly become favourite moments as you watch it multiple times. The contrast between the giant Nordic goddess and the shifty little North-African seems to work brilliantly and the backdrop of a beautiful black & white Paris with incredible lighting more than makes up for a few minor flaws. 9/10

Angel-a can be described as a romantic comedy, as a movie about angels and as one about therapy. As a romantic comedy it is a good and charming film, which stands far away from the omnipresent and boring Hollywood romantic comedies. As a movie about angels it is not convincing, and the best it can be said in its favour is that the movie is an heterodox rendering of angels, half divine and half too-human.

But the best use that can be given to this film is to adopt it as a manual of cognitive or rational-emotive therapy. A well respected field within psychology, cognitive therapy looks for transforming distorted thinking, which it is said, affects the mood, the behaviour and the life of people. That is simply what Angel-a does with Andre, giving him reasons to love himself, and teaching him techniques to change the way he thinks or speaks of himself. If we go to cinema some times to enjoy ourselves and some times to bring something to our lives, this movie allows us to do both. Art and cinema have also ethical consequences -in the sense of Foucault- giving us clues about how to live our lives better. In this sense the best description of Angel-a is given above by Elizabeth Arthur when she says that this is "a film about learning to love yourself".

Only one question remains: Why a director like Besson, who has been making movies about violence, decides to read about cognitive therapy and bring angels to earth and make a film like this?