Review of Angels with Dirty Faces (1938) by Kyle V — 05 Aug 2009

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. I'm enjoying the films from 1938 that did NOT receive Best Picture nominations more than those that did. "Angels With Dirty Faces" received several big nominations, e.g. Best Actor (James Cagney, with his first-ever nomination) and Best Director (Michael Curtiz, who would direct "Casablanca" a few years later), but there was no Best Picture nomination.

Lo and behold, I found "Angels" a lot more engaging and unique than all the films that got Best Picture nods, including the winner, "You Can't Take It With You," which I rated a 5 out of 10. Something went terribly wrong with the Academy in 1938.

"Angels With Dirty Faces" is a crisp, exquisitely edited story about a couple of lower-class boys who go in different directions as they age. One gets involved in serious crime (Cagney), and the other becomes a priest (he is played by a rock-solid actor I've never seen before, Pat O'Brien). That's certainly a hackneyed set-up, but "Angels" plays with this classic idea in unique ways. Cagney's character, named Rocky, has some significant complexity. He is not a crude gangster caricature. Rocky links up with the priest to offer counsel and camaraderie to some of the local juvenile delinquents, but things get messy when it becomes clear that Rocky is not fully reformed.

When Rocky gets into mortal danger due to conflicts with the local mob (one mobster is played by Humphrey Bogart), his relationship to the boys and to his priest friend, whom Rocky clearly loves, become delicate indeed. This is especially difficult when Rocky gets the boys involved in one of his scams, and the boys have the possibility of getting out of homelessness and destitution for the first time.

The priest has to make very difficult decisions about where his loyalties lie, how to provide an example to boys, and how much corruption to tolerate in society. Do you rat on a good man who's gotten mixed up with the wrong element? What will the boys think if their beloved hero, Rocky, is taken down? The film doesn't flinch in the end either, refusing to give the story a phony, sappy ending that the studio no doubt was hoping for.

This isn't the greatest screenplay ever written, but it is more complex and authentic than most. Curtiz keeps a laser-like focus on the story and doesn't waste a shot. He also demonstrates real skill with directing both adults and teenagers. The Academy really had it wrong leaving this off the Best Picture slate, just like they were wrong to leave off "Marie Antoinette.".

Especially galling is the fact that "Angels" and "Marie" didn't even win in any of the smaller categories. Each film went home completely empty-handed. I suppose the Academy is entitled to an off year every now and again, but this strains one's tolerance.