Holy plot twist!
"Black Angel" is a B noir from 1946, so it's little known now. But this movie has a plot twist on par with some of the biggest from much more prominent films.
It's a small miracle of misdirection, and the casting team made the brilliant choice of putting Peter Lorre in the role of what we assume is the villain. Peter Lorre in a film noir has to be the villain, right? The problem is, Dan Duryea is in this too, and he also frequently steps up as villain in films like these. What to do? You completely pull the rug out from under the audience, is what you do.
Not a major addition to the film noir canon, but a very satisfying one for lovers of the genre.
Grade: A-
"Black Angel" is a B noir from 1946, so it's little known now. But this movie has a plot twist on par with some of the biggest from much more prominent films.
It's a small miracle of misdirection, and the casting team made the brilliant choice of putting Peter Lorre in the role of what we assume is the villain. Peter Lorre in a film noir has to be the villain, right? The problem is, Dan Duryea is in this too, and he also frequently steps up as villain in films like these. What to do? You completely pull the rug out from under the audience, is what you do.
Not a major addition to the film noir canon, but a very satisfying one for lovers of the genre.
Grade: A-