City of Angels (1998)

Inspired by the modern classic, Wings of Desire, City involves an angel (Cage) who is spotted by a doctor in an operating room. Franz plays Cage's buddy who somehow knows a lot about angels.

Director:

Brad Silberling

Writers:

Wim Wenders (screenplay), Peter Handke (screenplay),

Stars:

Nicolas Cage, Meg Ryan, Andre Braugher

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 9 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nicolas Cage	...	Seth
Meg Ryan	...	Dr. Maggie Rice
Andre Braugher	...	Cassiel
Dennis Franz	...	Nathaniel Messinger
Colm Feore	...	Jordan Ferris
Robin Bartlett	...	Anne
Joanna Merlin	...	Teresa Messinger
Sarah Dampf	...	Susan
Rhonda Dotson	...	Susan's Mother
Nigel Gibbs	...	Doctor
John Putch	...	Man in Car
Lauri Johnson	...	Woman in Car
Christian Aubert	...	Foreign Visitor in Car
Jay Patterson	...	Air Traffic Controller
Shishir Kurup	...	Jimmy, Anesthesiologist

Storyline

Seth is an angel who accompanies the spirits of the recently dead to the ever after. Seth has never been human and so has has never experienced touch or taste. When in the hospital however he comes across Dr. Maggie Rice, a brilliant young heart surgeon who is devoted to her profession and her patients. Seth has the power to let himself be seen but Maggie finds him far too mysterious. Seth also meets a patient, Nathaniel Messinger, who has news for him - he too was once an angel like Seth but chose to fall to Earth and become human. Seth makes a decision on his future, which does not turn out as he had expected.

---

Plot Keywords:

angel | love | fall | doctor | hospital | 

---

Taglines:

What if angels walked amoung us, and one of them fell in love with us?

---

Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sexuality including language, and some nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros.

Country:

Germany USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 April 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Un ángel enamorado

Filming Locations:

Big Bear Lake, Big Bear Valley, San Bernardino National Forest, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$55,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$59,000,000 (Non-US) (14 August 1998)

Gross:

$78,745,923 (USA) (28 August 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Atlas Entertainment, Monarchy Enterprises B.V., Regency Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The rooftop scene with Dennis Franz and Nicolas Cage sitting on scaffolding high above the city was shot for real. Both actors were afraid of heights.

---

Goofs

When Maggie and Seth are looking at Maggie's blood through a microscope, the image shown is too zoomed in for a light microscope (with a maximum resolving power of around X1500).

---

Quotes

Maggie Rice: Those eyes. The way he looked right... right down into me.

---

Connections

References Valley Girl (1983)

---

Soundtracks

"Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop"
Written by Lionel Hampton and Curley Hamner (as Curly Hamner)
Performed by Louis Prima
Courtesy of Jasmie Records

User Reviews

Unbelievably underrated

I just watched this movie again for about the 3rd time. People say the movie is depressing, unoriginal, and boring. I'll bend on the depressing part, but the other 2 are completely un-true.

Nicholas Cage and Meg Ryan give pretty good performances, nothing oscar-worthy, but it's not the acting that makes this movie great. It's beautiful. Pure heaven to the eyes and ears. While you see the wonderful scenes, and backgrounds, with wonderful color and beautiful art direction, and hear the perefectly performed and selected score in the background (with contributions from U2, Sarah McLachlan, and the surprise hit "Iris" from the Goo Goo Dolls) it doesn't really matter what kind of acting is happening. The screenplay is pretty good, but somewhat lacking, which is why I give it an 8.25 on a scale from 1-10. Its a love story, yes, and can get cheesy at points, but none the less, it's still worth seeing once or twice.