Angels Over Broadway (1940)
Review by HTQ4
Film:
DVD:

Written by Ben Hecht
Directed by Lee Garmes and Ben Hecht
Starring Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Rita Hayworth, Thomas Mitchell, and John Qualen

Features:

• Trailers
  

Anamorphic: N/A; appears in its original 1.33:1 format

My Advice: Definitely rent it

Charles Engle (Qualen) has been caught embezzling and has decided to commit suicide, writing a note to that effect. He goes out in search of a good place to do the deed, but fate seems to always step in his way. He finds himself at the Pigeon Club at a table with the beautiful Nina Barone (Hayworth) and Bill O'Brian (Fairbanks). O'Brian has mistaken him for a high roller and is trying to lure him in to a high-stakes poker game with a famous gambler. Also while at the Pigeon Club, Mr. Engle catches the attention of drunken playwright Gene Gibbons (Mitchell), who makes it his personal mission in life (at least for tonight) to be Mr. Engle's own personal savior. So, this unlikely group of people begin a quest to obtain $3,000 for Mr. Engle in order to prevent his suicide.

What a beautiful screenplay. The use of language is absolutely stunning. It is full of witty and thoughtful one line stingers that, if you are listening closely enough, really make you stop and think. Not only that, but they seem to come so naturally out of the story that you almost miss them. It is a wonderful tale that does not have any problems staying ahead of its audience...even if the audience is watching it anew sixty-two years after its original release.

In my humble opinion, Mitchell was the real star of this movie. He was the ring leader of the rabble and most of the aforementioned one-liners came from him and seemed to drip from his mouth like warm honey. To be fair, though, it is still an ensemble piece. All four stars each pull their equal weight to make the story intriguing and entertaining. Hayworth was everything she was supposed to be: naive and stunningly beautiful. Fairbanks' portrayal of the money-hungry gangster wanna-be was a little over the top and he got ahead of himself vocally on several occasions, but it didn't seem to hurt the movie that much. Qualen got himself caught in the quagmire of playing a man about to end it all, but when the script really allowed him to get out of it, he leapt at the opportunity--which made for a really nice character arc for him.

When I watch these older films on DVD, I'm at once thankful that they have been transferred to this format for posterity--and normally remastered and the whole nine. I also cringe to think of the wonderful insight we have lost forever because no one ever thought to get these people together and record their conversations about the making of these older films. I further cringe to think of all the movies even today that aren't getting this treatment done, but that's another rant altogether. Needless to say, there is no commentary track, but there is also not really anything else, either. All we get are trailers.

The film itself should be seen by everyone: definitely rent it. However, only the most devoted fans of Hayworth, Fairbanks, or Mitchell should add this one to their permanent collection.