Angela (1995)

Director:

Rebecca Miller

Writer:

Rebecca Miller (writer)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A ten year old girl named Angela leads her six year old sister, Ellie, through various regimens of 'purification'...

Plot Keywords:

Virgin Mary | Religion | Dream Like | Mother Daughter Relationship | Dysfunctional

Awards:

4 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Miranda Rhyne	...	Angela
Charlotte Eve Blythe	...	Ellie (as Charlotte Blythe)
Anna Levine	...	Mae (as Anna Thomson)
John Ventimiglia	...	Andrew
Ruth Maleczech	...	Sleepwalker
Vincent Gallo	...	Preacher
Garrett Bemer	...	Tom
Peter Facinelli	...	Lucifer
Hynden Walch	...	Darlene (as Hynden Walsh)
Henry Stram	...	Man at Fair
Sara Caitlin Hall	...	Anne
Frances Conroy	...	Anne's Mother (as Francis Conroy)
Gerard Lyons III	...	Anne's Father
Rodger L. Phillips	...	Frank
Io Tillett Wright	...	Sam

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

UK:15

Company:

Tree Farm Productions

Quotes:

[Angela is explaining to Ellie all about sex using the horse as an example]
Angela: See this?
Ellie: Yeah.
Angela: That's exactly what men have. They stick it in the women. I've seen mom and dad do it. It looks like it hurts.
Ellie: Why do they do it then?
Angela: It's a rule. You have to.
Ellie: I don't wanna do it.
Angela: Well if you don't do it by the time you're 21 you start getting smaller.
Ellie: How come?
Angela: Cuz there's certain vitamins and I don't know but I've seen people like that. They're mom's age and they're as small as you.
[...]

Movie Connections:

References Mogambo (1953)

Soundtrack:

Angel Of Mercy

Poetic, beautifully non-sentimental study of perspectives in the forgotten universe known as childhood

The two girls playing the lead parts here are total amateurs who act better actors' studio veterans. 'Level of belief beyond what any adult actors could achieve' is right, as Rebecca Miller, the director and writer, put it herself in her introduction on IFC. 'Jessica' is the story of a sort of modern day, adventurous, 'Huckleberry Finn type 10 year old girl living in the boondocks (Poughkeepsie?) with parents who are apparently former aspiring entertainer/artists who have now resigned themselves to the loss of their dreams and are having some weird, not quite clearly stated (but better for it being so)problems in their relationship. The mother succumbs to mental illness and Jessica, in order to cope creates an imaginary universe of 'order' based on the odd mixture of beliefs she's been taught in the (Christian Scientist?)household. Her only disciple is her little sister Ellie who follows her around as they do things to absolve themselves from whatever 'sins' they have committed, and 'go to heaven.' The wonderfully eccentric plot is beside the point though, because what emerges here is a unique perspective from the vantage point of a (quite mature but not vulgar) 10 year old, which automatically takes the viewer back to the forgotten soul of the 10 year old in themselves (not the silly Star Wars junkie type 10 year old soul, but the unspoiled , down-to-earth-in-its-flights-of-fancy, ten year old imagination that exists to whatever degree in all kids before it is forever eradicated). This is not easy; it is not like making a Disney movie. It requires super-involved naturalistic acting on the level of Brando and DeNiro from children. What Miller knows to her great credit is that children are much more likely to become 'themselves living in a different world' and therefore, a 'character' because they do not yet have the inhibitions that block most adult actors from believing the film world is real! The film world is as 'real' to them, as anything else once they get used to it. Jean-Pierre Leaud (for instance) has never again achieved the level of realism, as an experienced adult actor, that he did in 'The 400 Blows.' I'm glad I recorded this beautiful little film (since it's not available on video and is only shown once in a long while on IFC)because it clearly belongs in the same class of No-BS movies about childhood exemplified by 'The Little Fugitive,''Forbidden Games,''400 Blows,' and 'Au Revoir Les Enfants.'