Ben Sanderson, a Hollywood screenwriter who lost everything because of his alcoholism, arrives in Las Vegas to drink himself to death. There, he meets and forms an uneasy friendship and non-interference pact with prostitute Sera.
A mild-mannered chemist and an ex-con must lead the counterstrike when a rogue group of military men, led by a renegade general, threaten a nerve gas attack from Alcatraz against San Francisco.
In order to foil a terrorist plot, an FBI agent undergoes a facial transplant surgery and assumes the identity and physical appearance of a terrorist, but the plan turns from bad to worse when the same terrorist impersonates the FBI agent.
Inspired by the modern classic, Wings of Desire (1987), City of Angels 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.
Haunted by the patients he failed to save, an extremely burned-out Manhattan ambulance paramedic fights to maintain his sanity over three fraught and turbulent nights.
Director:
Martin Scorsese
Stars:
Nicolas Cage,
Patricia Arquette,
John Goodman
Because his wife left him and took his son with her, screenwriter Ben Sanderson has started drinking, a lot. He's getting more and more isolated and he troubles women in bars because he wants to have sex with them. When he gets fired, he decides to leave everything behind and move to Las Vegas and drink himself to death. In Las Vegas he meets Sera, a prostitute with some problems as well who he moves in with.Written by
Marco van Hoof <k_luifje7@hotmail.com>
Included among the American Film Institute's 1998 list of the 400 movies nominated for the Top 100 Greatest American Movies. See more »
Goofs
The checks (casino chips) in play on the dice game in particular are unlabeled. Those are hard plastic play at home chips. Every joint has the name and denomination of their checks on a round label in the middle of their, usually, clay checks or sometimes a hard, slippery composite check with a metal insert about the size of a dime. The checks are labeled for obvious security reasons. See more »
Quotes
Sera:
Don't you like me, Ben?
Ben Sanderson:
Sera... what you don't understand is - no, see, no. You can never, never ask me to stop drinking. Do you understand?
Sera:
I do. I really do.
See more »
Crazy Credits
The opening credits do not appear until fifteen minutes into the film. See more »
Alternate Versions
LaserDisc version is unrated and contains more sexually explicit footage. First pressings of the VHS versions also contained this footage but later pressings did not. The Unrated Edition has also been released on DVD and runs 112 min. See more »
Its rare to come across a tragedy which in the end still leaves you something absolutely positive and make you believe in life...that there maybe just maybe true love that exists in this world! Its a story of despair and hopelessness and pain...But its also story of hope , of love and of those beautiful moments which adds meaning to life. Its only when you see death hovering around you ; you end up discovering Life Is Beautiful. Its a paradox and hence a tragedy but beyond that its a pure love. A love so pure that both people say that they want other person for their selfish reasons ; to get over their own loneliness & emptiness and still they manage to make each other truly happy.
Its hard not to be touched by this movie and not have a tear in your eyes. At many moments you stare at the characters on the screen and may see even your own vivid reflection. You can feel for Nicolas Cage because he is good soul who is tired of his life...who nobody really understood or cared for when he needed them most. Someone who has been left to die alone in vast desert. And he conceded to his fate and embracing his death with open arms that he meet someone where two people love each other as they always should have. Without any conditions , without any expectations , without any social or peer pressure ; without wearing any masks on their faces. Bare , honest and tranquil love . Where two people feel other person can feel his pain without speaking ; where two people can cry with each other without being judged and where they can feel each other beyond the skin ..deep underneath the heart...right at their soul.
If anyone ever doubted the existence of soul ; i wish they tell us how else can they describe the two characters in this movie. They nothing but two broken souls who become soulmates to heal each other !!
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Its rare to come across a tragedy which in the end still leaves you something absolutely positive and make you believe in life...that there maybe just maybe true love that exists in this world! Its a story of despair and hopelessness and pain...But its also story of hope , of love and of those beautiful moments which adds meaning to life. Its only when you see death hovering around you ; you end up discovering Life Is Beautiful. Its a paradox and hence a tragedy but beyond that its a pure love. A love so pure that both people say that they want other person for their selfish reasons ; to get over their own loneliness & emptiness and still they manage to make each other truly happy.
Its hard not to be touched by this movie and not have a tear in your eyes. At many moments you stare at the characters on the screen and may see even your own vivid reflection. You can feel for Nicolas Cage because he is good soul who is tired of his life...who nobody really understood or cared for when he needed them most. Someone who has been left to die alone in vast desert. And he conceded to his fate and embracing his death with open arms that he meet someone where two people love each other as they always should have. Without any conditions , without any expectations , without any social or peer pressure ; without wearing any masks on their faces. Bare , honest and tranquil love . Where two people feel other person can feel his pain without speaking ; where two people can cry with each other without being judged and where they can feel each other beyond the skin ..deep underneath the heart...right at their soul.
If anyone ever doubted the existence of soul ; i wish they tell us how else can they describe the two characters in this movie. They nothing but two broken souls who become soulmates to heal each other !!