L'ange Levine

An intriguing exploration of life and death, guilt and redemption. Milo O'Shea, Ida Kaminska, and especially Zero Mostel are all expert with complicated (Bernard Malamud) material. But it is Harry Belafonte as the "angel" Levine that makes this must viewing. Truly fascinating to watch. An odd, but worthwhile film.

Morris Miskin (Zero Mostel) is a Jewish man whose faith in God and mankind is at all all-time low. His wife is bedridden and they can barely afford her medications, he's lost his business after it burned down, due to back trouble he's unemployable and he's disowned his daughter for marrying a non-Jew. And, when the film begins, he's applying for welfare benefits as he simply cannot pay his bills. Into this messed up and depressing life arrives a man who claims he's an angel (Harry Belafonte). Not surprisingly, Morris isn't convinced the guy is an angel...especially since the angel curses God and steals. Later in the film this 'angel' even slaps his girlfriend. Clearly, if he is an angel, he's NOT a very good one. But this guy who claims to be angel promises to help Morris if only he'd believe in him.

The acting in this film is excellent...very nice and well done by Belafonte and Mostel. As for the movie itself, it's incredibly depressing...and a bit like a modern telling of Job....just a bit. But is it good and should you watch it? Well, if you are dealing with depression, my suggestion is you skip it. The film is so downbeat and hard to watch...it'll likely make you more depressed if you see it. This actually is likely for ANYONE watching the movie...it's oppressively sad to watch. And, after all is said and done, you might just feel miserable yourself. Interesting? Yes. Enjoyable, good grief, no.

The Angel Levine is about multiple characters who have lost hope. Everyone of them deals with death in their own ways. The movie is a study on faith as much as it is a study on race. The film is flawed and worse, it is forgotten. To include two giants of the motion pictures, Zero Mostel and. Harry Belafonte, to have a limited audience is a crime. No matter what you believe, The Angel Levin talks bout the pains we all face as humans. A hidden gem of a story, I hope it continues to find an audience in years to come.

Only viewers who are partial to stories that don't clearly differentiate between the real and the imaginary are likely to respond positively to this picture. But the fuzziness of that dividing line is one of the major themes, and as such is rendered effectively. Levine may be an angel from above, or merely a hoodlum with a snappy line of patter - along with a conscience. To its credit, the story works both ways. And if Mishkin has the same beneficial effect on Levine's spiritual life that Levine has on Mishkin's, then the story works on yet a third level of interpretation. The picture slows noticeably in a few spots: as an adaptation of a short story it cannot quite sustain a hour and forty minutes of running time without flagging a bit. Zero Mostel is outstanding, bringing the character to life with every gesture, inflection, movement and facial expression. Harry Belafonte's limited range is barely adequate, but the small supporting cast is a strong one. Those who savor the real/imaginary byplay are also likely to enjoy "Finding Graceland" and "Bronco Billy."

When I looked up Harry Belafonte on netflix.com, this movie was listed as available for streaming. And so it is that I'm now reviewing what was previously unknown to me. Zero Mostel is unemployed because of a bad back and his wife (Ida Kaminska) is bedridden. Belafonte claims to be an angel in order to help with his problems but he has some of his own like a woman named Sally (Gloria Foster) who can't forgive him for his condescending attitude toward her. I'll stop there and just say part of me was confused by the narrative especially when Harry just keeps on making one uncomfortable with his profanities and not-always-trusting manner. Mostel also makes himself hard to identify with especially when he argues with his wife. Still, it was fascinating to watch and I was never bored. So on that note, The Angel Levine is at the least worth a look. P.S. I have to mention that Ms. Foster was born in the same city I was which was Chicago, Ill.