Angel (1984) – Review

“High School honour student by day. Hollywood hooker by Night” One has to admit that is a great tagline and not only did this film offer audiences a salacious premise it also hinted at a darker tone than what was offered from the popular teen comedies of the time, and that tagline belongs to Angel a true outlier of the genre.

The 1980s saw the release of a lot of sexploitation films and the marketing of Angel by New World Pictures certainly promised audiences a sleazy movie about a teenage prostitute double life, but the screenplay by Joseph Michael Cala and Robert Vincent O’Neil was far from your standard cheap sex flick as to took the time to properly dive in the underbelly of the city and gave its cast of characters more than just two-dimensional caricatures and this allowed the viewer time to sympathize and understand the kind of world these people inhabited without being exploitative or condescending.

It reflected a grim reality many people were not aware of.

The movie follows the adventures of fifteen-year-old honour student Molly Stewart (Donna Wilkes) who attends a private Los Angeles prep school by day but transforms herself into “Angel” a high-heeled street teenage prostitute by night as she works the hard streets of Hollywood Boulevard so that she can pay for tuition. Unfortunately, rough trade and angry pimps are the least of the dangers in this movie as a psycho-necrophiliac serial killer (John Diehl) has begun to stalk and murder prostitutes, many of which are Angel’s close friends. Angel does have some support in the form of a “street family” made up of aging movie cowboy Kit Carson (Rory Calhoun), street performer Yoyo Charlie (Steven M. Porter) and drag queen Mae (Dick Shawn).  While this group is helpful the key to her survival will be Lt. Andrews (Cliff Gorman) who has been tasked with tracking down the killer.

“We think the killer could be a member of the Royal Family.”

Stray Observations:

• In the opening scene, a woman cleaning the sidewalk addresses her as “Angel” while she is attired in her prep school wardrobe, which has me wondering how she’s managed to keep her dual identity a secret for so long.
• Rory Calhoun plays a former star of B-Westerns, which was not much of a stretch for an actor who had starred in countless low-budget Western movies and television shows throughout the 50s and 60s.
• Angel stops pulling tricks at midnight and while this would allow her the proper amount of sleep to remain a straight “A” student it would also cut down on how much money she could make as a prostitute.
• One of her Johns says, “You better be fourteen or I’ll throw back for being too old” and that line makes me weep for humanity.
• It’s never explained how the killer found out Angel/Molly was the person who fingered him to the police, or how he tracked down her address. Which results in the death of Mae.

Did her landlord place an ad stating where Angel lived?

The clear standout performance in the film comes from Donna Wilkes who brings depth and complexity to the character of Molly/Angel as she deftly portrays the character’s vulnerability and strength. The film also perfectly captures the spirit of the early 80s with its synth-heavy soundtrack and neon-coloured cinematography, however, despite its seemingly lurid premise, Angel is surprisingly tender and heartfelt with Wilkes delivering an outstanding performance as the titular character, bringing depth and complexity to a character that could have easily been one-dimensional. Molly’s journey is both heartbreaking and inspiring, as she struggles to balance her dual identities and ultimately finds the courage to take control of her life and this is something any viewer can get behind. As for the movie’s killer, well, as necrophiliac psychos go John Diehl gives a truly chilling performance and properly raises the film’s stakes.

Even Jack the Ripper was never this creepy.

While the film is undoubtedly a product of its time it’s refreshing to see a movie that doesn’t shy away from exploring themes such as sexual empowerment and female agency. It also that treats its subject matter with respect and it never feels exploitative. The film’s supporting cast is also notable, with standout performances from Dick Shawn Molly’s eccentric and protective friend, and Rory Calhoun as a washed-up Hollywood actor who becomes Molly’s unlikely ally, and it’s this collection of well-rounded and authentic characters that makes this film stand apart from its contemporaries.

“Have you seen Angels with Dirty Faces?”

It should be noted that Angel may not be for everyone due to subject matter, it is a well-crafted film that effectively captures the seedy underbelly of Hollywood in the early 1980s and its exploration of themes such as poverty, addiction, and sexual exploitation may be difficult to watch at times, but ultimately it is a powerful and thought-provoking film that leaves a lasting impact on the viewer. Overall, Angel is a compelling film that offers a unique perspective on the coming-of-age genre, one that is not afraid to tackle such a tough subject matter, and it does so with a good degree of sensitivity and compassion. It’s a touching and thought-provoking film that will leave a lasting impression on those who watch it and its timeless quality has allowed it to remain a cult classic to this day.