``Angel Heart'' Mickey Rourke's sadness, steeped in Alan Parker's worldview

"Angel Heart" synopsis

At the request of a mysterious person, a private detective from Brooklyn pursues the whereabouts of a popular singer who has disappeared. However, strange murders occur one after another wherever he goes, and he discovers an unexpected The Truth...

Index

• The fusion of two genres that director Alan Parker aimed for
• From Jack Nicholson to Mickey Rourke
• Music, the driving force behind Parker's films
• Avoiding the adult rating and later becoming a cult movie

The fusion of two genres that director Alan Parker aimed for

Director Alan Parker got his start writing commercial scripts. The first screenplay he wrote for a movie was `` Melody '' (1971). Because of his background, he seems to be particular about writing. Although he does not write the scenarios for all of his films, he even wrote the screenplay for ``Angel Heart'' (1987). Ever since William Hjortsberg's original work (the Japanese version of `` Falling Angels '' was published by Hayakawa Bunko) came out in 1978, I have been interested in making it into a film, but he was not approached immediately. .

"For years, the film rights had been passed around between different people. Apparently they went to Robert Redford, but he gave up on them," Parker himself said. The production notes posted on the site he created, ``Alan Parker.com,'' contain such a description. "Maybe it's because Harry Angel, the main character's sullen demeanor, doesn't fit the image of the traditional American hero Robert Redford," Parker writes.

It was in 1985 that director Parker was approached with the idea of ​​turning it into a movie. When producer Elliott Kostner had dinner with Parker at Studio Pinewood in the UK, he handed him a copy of the original book on his desk. Parker, of course, didn't miss the Being There.

"Angel Heart" trailer

"I thought we could combine two genres with this movie: one is a classic detective story reminiscent of [Raymond] Chandler, and the other is The Natural world," Costner said. He was also the producer of `` Farewell, Beloved '' (1975).

The story is set in 1955, and the main character is Harry Angel, a New York private detective. He is asked by a mysterious man named Louis Cypher to confirm whether Johnny Favorite, who was known as a popular singer 12 years ago, is alive or dead. When Harry goes to meet the people who had ties to Johnny, they are attacked one after another.

The original story is set only in New York, but in the film adaptation, the first half was set in New York, while the second half was moved to New Orleans. According to the aforementioned site, many movies are set in New York, so they thought it lacked freshness and thought of other filming locations. His plans come true perfectly, and the somewhat humid city of New Orleans adds to the film's frightening atmosphere. By writing the screenplay himself, Parker created a horror and hard-boiled world that was slightly different from the original.

From Jack Nicholson to Mickey Rourke