CBB Presents The Bear Cave of Terror - Ep. 20 - Angel Heart

On this week's episode of the Bear Cave of Terror, I invite Rob Staeger back to talk about one of his favorite films, the supernatural noir horror, 1987's Angel Heart, directed by Alan Parker. In contrast to the director's previous films like Birdie, or Fame, this time he tackles his adaptation of the detective thriller Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg, where Mickey Rourke's Harry Angel hunts down a mysterious crooner for Robert DeNiro's Louis Cypher through the streets of New York City and New Orleans - including him encountering 80s sitcom darling, Lisa Bonet, in an impactful role - while the missing singer's associates wind up gruesomely murdered along the way. Marred by controversy that almost prevented its original wide release in US cinemas, it has since become a bit of an underground cult hit, and hopefully, dear listener, you may be intrigued to give it a watch after Rob and Steve chat about the stunning performances of the leads, staging of mid-1950s New York and New Orleans, bizarre symbolism, and more! (Beware there are major spoilers in the last 15 minutes of the episode...)

Additional Resources for this episode:

"Actress Lisa Bonet transcends the 'Angel Heart' controversy" by Victor Valle, Reading Eagle, 3/2/1987

"'Angel Heart'video to be uncut" by Entertainment News Source, Sun Sentinel, 6/26/87

Interview with Mickey Rourke on Angel Heart, KCRA-NBC 3, 1/27/87

Interview with Alan Parker & Mickey Rourke for Angel Heart (1987) by John C. Tibbets (re-release 11/5/21)

In Conversation with Director Alan Parker on Angel Heart/BEI - 4/26/18

YouTube channel highly recommended for deep dives into this movie:

Youtube.com/@CineG - Angel Heart analysis and reflections - playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKh25aJ1QU8J5I2hdRuDp4GOvyuBPSgIL