Despite the presence of Dana Tierney and director Otto Preminger, Fallen Angel fails to have the impact of the previous year's Laura. That being said, it's still a snappy but minor film noir, the story of a down-on-his-luck man who falls in love with a vixen and marries a nice girl for the money. The "mystery" end of the story starts just at the moment you least expect it and it unfolds suspensefully, but the ending, where the hero is apparently "redeemed" from his immoral ways by the love of a good woman, is too out of the blue to be believed.
Compared with Laura, Fallen Angel is much, much more "noir-ish", filled with typical noir directorial touches. It still, however, has Preminger's trademark fluid camerawork, and is certainly worth watching, however disappointing parts of it may be.
Compared with Laura, Fallen Angel is much, much more "noir-ish", filled with typical noir directorial touches. It still, however, has Preminger's trademark fluid camerawork, and is certainly worth watching, however disappointing parts of it may be.