Fallen Angel (1945)

Director:

Otto Preminger

Writers:

Marty Holland (novel)
Harry Kleiner (writer)

Release Date:

5 December 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Film-Noir | Mystery | Romance

Tagline:

The creator of "Laura" does it again!

Plot:

Eric Stanton (Dana Andrews), thrown off a bus for not having the fare, begins to frequent a diner called "Pop's Eats" ...

Plot Keywords:

Coffee Shop | Sister Sister Relationship | Sadistic Cop | Murder | Jukebox

Cast

Alice Faye	...	June Mills
Dana Andrews	...	Eric Stanton
Linda Darnell	...	Stella
Charles Bickford	...	Mark Judd
Anne Revere	...	Clara Mills
Bruce Cabot	...	Dave Atkins
John Carradine	...	Professor Madley
Percy Kilbride	...	Pop

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #10940)

Filming Locations:

Orange, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Alice Faye's on-screen rendition of "Slowly" (music by David Raksin, lyrics by Kermit Goell) was cut from this film. The song is heard sung off camera by the "radio voice" of Dick Haymes, as waitress Linda Darnell works behind the counter. Decca's commercial single of Dick's song is featured on a CD box set from the British label Jasmine, entitled "The Golden Years of Dick Haymes."

Quotes:

June Mills: I need you, Eric.
Eric Stanton: [sarcastically] You need me, right.
June Mills: You're my husband, and I'm your wife.
Eric Stanton: Right out of a book, again.
June Mills: Yes, out of a book: "We were born to tread the earth as angels, to seek out heaven this side of the sky. But they who race above shall stumble in the dark, and fall from grace."
Eric Stanton: Go on. Sounds good.
June Mills: "Then love alone can make the fallen angel rise. For only two together can enter Paradise."

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Biography: Linda Darnell: Hollywood's Fallen Angel" (1999)

Soundtrack:

Paducah

Obsession before Vertigo

Otto Priminger was basking in the sun as a result of his classic film noir "Laura" when he followed up with this highly under-appreciated film. The key element is basically the same as in "Laura" and that key element is obsession with a beautiful but dangerous woman. The femme fatale of film noir is present at the creation of the genre, here embodied by Linda Darnell. Many men become obsessed with beautiful women who are not deserving of such adoration. In its perverted form obsession leads to stalking. In its most common form it leads to heartbreak and mental torture. It can also lead to murder. Why do men become obsessed with dangerous beautiful women? Ask your shrink for an analysis. Alfred Hitchcock made the best film on obsession with a beautiful woman, "Vertigo." Before "Vertigo," "Fallen Angel" was the best and is still one of the best. The acting is marvelous, especially Dana Andrews, Linda Darnell, and all those wonderful character actors that Otto Priminger hand picked for their roles. The weakest performance is by Alice Faye, but then she is out of her element and badly miscast, not at all a good choice for a film noir. Plus my understanding is that Priminger cut many of her key scenes to make more room for the machinations of Linda Darnell. The shadowy world of midnight rendezvous, dark tones of shades of rain, a diner called Pop's Eats, all make for a classic film noir for fans and non-fans as well.