City of Angels (1998)

Director:

Brad Silberling

Writers (WGA):

Wim Wenders (screenplay) &
Peter Handke (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

10 April 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Fantasy | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

She didn't believe in angels until she fell in love with one.

Plot:

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.

Plot Keywords:

Angel | Doctor | Fall | Hospital | Tragedy

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 9 wins & 11 nominations

Cast

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

Also Known As:

Stadt der Engel (Germany)

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

Germany | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #35791) | Iceland:L | Brazil:12 | Canada:14A (Ontario - 2006) | Philippines:PG-13 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Hungary:14 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:11 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Sweden:11 | UK:12

Filming Locations:

Big Bear Lake, California, USA

Company:

Atlas Entertainment

Trivia:

Right before the falling sequence, when Nicolas Cage is preparing to fall, the music being played are the prayers "Our Father" and "Hail Mary" recited in Polish.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Maggie and Seth are on the floor of Maggie's uncle's cabin, Maggie's hand alternates between touching/not touching Seth's face between shots.

Quotes:

Maggie: Are you a visitor?
Seth: Yes.
Maggie: Well, visiting hours have been over since 8.
Seth: Wh-Why do they have that?
Maggie: What?
Seth: Hours. Doesn't it help the patient to be visited?
Maggie: Well, who are you visiting? Mr. Messinger?
Seth: Right now?
Maggie: Yeah.
Seth: You.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Dogma (1999)

Soundtrack:

Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop

Are You in Despair?

A very different look at the world of angels and their interaction with human beings. If this were a story about the devil, IMDB would have plenty of comments so I am not surprised to read so many negative ones.

I don't believe that angels wear black, but I do believe in the premise of this movie: "sometimes things are true whether you believe in them or not."

Meg Ryan, a very unlikely choice, was thoroughly believable as an obsessive-compulsive doctor who never sleeps. When she loses a patient for the first time, she cries bitterly and cannot understand how it could have happened--all witnessed by Nicolas Cage as Seth, an angel who was sent to escort her patient to heaven. Cage allows himself to be seen by Ryan in a hospital corridor and sweetly asks, "Are you in despair?" This entire conversation sweeps the women in the audience into their evolving relationship. Yes, I guess this is definitely a woman's movie.

Others in lesser roles were quite good. Dennis Franz nails the part of a former angel who has "fallen to earth." (I do not watch his television show so this was the first time I have seen him act--I was impressed.) Andre Braugher, formerly of Homicide (a show I did watch), was terrific as Seth's closest angel friend, although he had very few lines, as usual Braugher was effective. His smile at the end of the movie stays with you.