61
Metascore
14 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 88Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertIt has the unsettled logic of a nightmare, in which nothing fits and everything seems inevitable and there are a lot of arrows in the air and they are all flying straight at you.
- 88Chicago TribuneChicago TribuneThe centerpiece for Angel Heart is Mickey Rourke's carefully modulated performance as Harry Angel. Ever a resourceful actor, Rourke is a marvel of complexity here, a blend of innocence and cunning, a mask of streetwise nonchalance over personal torment. [06 Mar 1987, p.F]
- 80EmpireIan NathanEmpireIan NathanA diabolical treat with Rourke and De Niro in fine form.
- 63Washington PostRita KempleyWashington PostRita KempleyAs fascinating as it is frightful. But despite all the occult patter and tony trimmings, Angel Heart is bogus -- only the bogeyman again.
- 60Los Angeles TimesSheila BensonLos Angeles TimesSheila BensonIn retrospect, there are gaps in the story, a crucial lack of parallelism about the murders, one interview in which Rourke makes amazing leaps of knowledge from we-don't-know where. But the performance that fuels it all, Rourke's unfolding portrayal of a man on a spiraling slide downward toward a truth he doesn't want to learn, may be enough to carry us beyond quibbles. [06 Mar 1987, p.C1]
- 50Slant MagazineJoseph Jon LanthierSlant MagazineJoseph Jon LanthierIt would all be laughable if the evil deeds and premature deaths and withered witch doctor hands led us to more than the protagonist’s unnecessarily messy self-discovery. As it is, it’s mostly just gratingly pointless.
- 50The New York TimesVincent CanbyThe New York TimesVincent CanbyMr. Parker is an eclectic film maker. He seems to have no readily identifiable obsessions that define supposedly more serious directors. He's a very able technician who needs a good screenplay, which is what's missing here.
- 50Time OutTime OutA first-person Faustian detective novel presents quite a problem to the screenwriter, and Parker's alterations to William Hjortsberg's Falling Angel slacken the cunning weave of strands.
- 50TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineAngel Heart is a convoluted combination of film noir and horror that, although expertly filmed by director Alan Parker, seems more an exercise in flashy visuals than mature cinematic storytelling.