Robert Mitchum was already a dab hand at film noir when he stepped into the delicious trap of Angel Face, Otto Preminger's 1952 addition to the genre. Here Mitchum plays an amazingly seducible guy who falls under the spell of spoiled rich girl Jean Simmons; a former race-car driver, he'd like to open his own sports-car garage, and her money would come in awfully handy. But she's got a few quirks to work out first, including her hostility for her stepmother, who doesn't stand a chance against this poker-faced vixen. True to its title, the film has an absolutely deadpan approach to this material, as Preminger's calm style recalls more the clinical courtroom proceedings of Anatomy of a Murder than the perverse lushness of Laura. Mitchum's in absolutely top form, and Jean Simmons has just right amount of intensity behind her porcelain beauty. The supporting cast is led by Herbert Marshall, as Simmons' father, a writer who's been sponging off his wife for years, and Leon Ames does a skillful turn as a crafty lawyer. The ending is as pre-ordained as can be, and the film moves toward its sinister conclusion without turning its head to explore other options. But that's why we love film noir. --Robert HortonMore...
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