City of Angels is Heavenly

Reviewed by Vickie Reichardt, Cinema Geek

Vick's Rating:

= There's two hours of my life I'll never see again. Is it too late to ask for my money back?
= They could have done SO much better. Wait for the video.
= Not bad at all. Some solid work.
= Wow! I'm very impressed. I might go see this one again.
= For the love of all that is good and kind in the world, what an amazing movie!!!

Directed by Brad Siberling

Cast: Seth.......................Nicolas Cage
Dr. Maggie Rice..............Meg Ryan
Cassiel..............................André Braugher
Nathaniel Messinger......Dennis Franz
Jordan..............................Colm Feore

Sigh. In this time of multi-million dollar special effects and high-tech filmmaking, it's nice to be reminded that a good story and good actors may be all that's necessary to produce a great film. "City of Angels" has those all-important ingredients and the result is a divine piece of work that possesses an almost ethereal quality.

Directed by Brad Siberling, and adapted from Wim Wenders' 1987 German film "Wings of Desire," "City of Angels" is an unearthly love story between Seth (Nicolas Cage), a melancholy angel who longs for the experiences he sees humans having every day, and Dr. Maggie Rice (Meg Ryan), a dedicated heart surgeon suffering from serious job burnout. Part of Seth's heavenly duties involve escorting the recently deceased to the Great Beyond, so it's only natural that he spends time waiting outside hospital operating rooms. It's here that, one day, he catches sight of Maggie, working desperately to save the life of her dying patient. Seth moves closer to the action and, in a millisecond of fierce determination, he's sure that Maggie has looked right at him...and he's smitten from that moment on. He consults with his best friend, fellow angel Cassiel (André Braugher), and decides to allow himself to be seen by Maggie. Soon he's popping up from out of nowhere to counsel her in a park or comfort her in a hallway. Maggie is immediately drawn to him but, with Seth limited by the constraints of angelhood, he is unable to act on their mutual attraction. That, in turn, raises the question: Should Seth give up eternity and everything he's ever known to become human and thereby have a relationship with the woman he loves?

Like I'm going to tell you.

"City of Angels" is a very peaceful, serene movie. Calming almost. It's not flashy, it's not Hollywood-ish and it's not cliche. It's...simple. The story is pretty basic (star-crossed lovers), but is still touching and heartfelt. The cast, despite the marquee value of their names, are so understated that they dissolve into their roles. Nicolas Cage--I'm not sure if I can even find the right word--glows as Seth. He has said in interviews that he wanted to give his character an almost hypnotic quality--something not human--that would enrapture anyone who looked at him. Well, Nicolas, it worked.

As for Meg Ryan, I'm fairly certain she must be ready to throttle the next person who describes her as "perky," and she's done a good job of undoing that label with her performance here. Sure, she's cute. But not cutesy, and there's a difference. Dr. Maggie Rice is a grownup with grownup problems, anxieties, fears and doubts, and Ryan conveys all of those emotions with a subtle touch. There are no painful, grandstanding soliloquies geared toward award nominations, nor are there any of those pesky expositions aimed at explaining her character's state of mind. If you can't get it from the nuances of her performance, then too bad for you. And I like that.

The supporting cast are just as solid. André Braugher does nice work as Cassiel, giving him an air of an all-knowing being, but one who still wishes he could know what it's like to feel the wind on his face. Dennis Franz, meanwhile, gets to show off his warm, cuddly side as Nathaniel, Maggie's patient and a former angel who took the leap (literally) to become human.

Despite the fact that I enjoyed this movie on all its levels, I have two favorite things about "City of Angels" and the first is its look. The original film took place in Berlin but, as the title suggests, this version calls Los Angeles home, and I can honestly say I've never seen that city presented in such a uniquely appealing way before. The buildings stretch higher, seem taller, look leaner. There's an overall grey tone, but it's not dirty or dingy. It's hard to describe, but if you see the film you'll know exactly what I mean. The filmmakers clearly took great care in selecting locations, and it shows. From the hospital where Maggie works, to the cavernous library where multitudes of angels hang out, every set has a distinct feeling about it that gives it character. Unlike many films where any old corridor would do, or where any fruit market is as good as the next, it's hard to imagine Maggie and Seth inhabiting any spaces but the ones chosen here.

My other favorite thing about the movie (I sound like I'm five), is the way the angels are portrayed, and much of the credit for that has to go to Wenders' original film. We've all seen movie angels before and to the best of my recollection they've always been divided into two camps, the "sitting on clouds in white robes with big feathery wings and halos" angels, or the ordinary "look like average folks" angels. Here, the filmmakers lean toward the latter (no halos in sight), but allow the angels to retain a completely unearthly presence. They dress in dark colors, wear long trenchcoats and like to gather on the beach at dusk and at dawn, in silence, to watch the sun rise/set. The scenes where the beach is lined with countless stoic figures are almost as haunting as they are moving. The angels linger everywhere, almost like shadows, and seem to be quite happy doing so. And somehow, even though I'm fully aware that it's just a movie and just one interpretation of the concept of angels, that aspect of the film left me with a strangely comforting feeling.

"City of Angels," as a whole, is a very tranquil and lovely piece of cinema. It's quiet, moving and pretty to look at. And, sometimes, that's enough.

Vickie, a self-confessed movie addict, has spent the last few years working at an entertainment magazine in Canada. When she's not toiling away at her computer in the office, she's toiling away at her computer at home-- hacking away at unfinished screenplays and planning her acceptance speech for the Academy Awards.