City of Angels (film)

City of Angelsis a 1998 Americanromantic fantasyfilm directed byBrad Silberling, and starringNicolas CageandMeg Ryan. Set in Los Angeles, California, the film is a looseremakeofWim Wenders's 1987 filmWings of Desire(Der Himmel über Berlin). As with the original,City of Angelstells the story of an angel (Cage) who falls in love with a mortal woman (Ryan), and wishes to become human to be with her. With the guidance of a man (Dennis Franz) who has already made the transition from immortality, the angelfallsand begins the human experience.
When producerDawn Steelsaw potential to pursue more story ideas in Wenders's original concept, she and her husbandCharles Rovenacquired the rights for an English-language adaptation. After years of delay, they found support fromWarner Bros.and recruited Silberling and screenwriterDana Stevensto execute the project. Themes were borrowed from Wenders's work, though the ending was altered, to a more tragic effect.City of Angelswas filmed around California and dedicated to Steel, who died before the premiere.
The remake was released to financial success, but mixed reviews, with some critics judging it to be a mawkish adaptation. It was also noted forits soundtrack, and nominated for several awards, particularly for its performances and soundtrack.
InLos Angeles, California, Seth is one of manyangelswho watch over humans, protecting them in unseen ways. His main responsibility is to appear to those who areclose to deathandguidethem to the next life.
During this task, Seth and one of his fellow angels,Cassiel, ask people what their favorite thing in life was. Despite these daily encounters, they have trouble understanding human beings and their ways, as angels lack human senses.
While waiting to escort a man undergoing heart surgery to the other world, Seth is impressed by the vigorous efforts of the surgeon, Maggie Rice, to save the ill-fated man's life and her sincere anguish at her failure to do so. Seth soon becomes focused on Maggie and becomes visible to her. They develop a connection, which soon turns to mutual attraction, although she is already involved with one of her colleagues, Jordan Ferris.
Seth then meets Nathaniel Messinger, one of Maggie's patients, who senses Seth's presence. He tells him that he, too, had once been an angel. But, asfree willis granted equally to mortals and angels, Nathaniel decided to become human by "falling". Seth begins to consider being with Maggie, and she learns that he is an angel.
Seth becomes human by jumping from the top of a skyscraper. Immediately upon awakening, he starts to experience many  human feelings and sensations that he had never been able to understand, beginning with physical pain. As a human, Seth heads to the hospital to see Maggie but is told she has gone to her uncle's mountain cabin at Lake Tahoe.
Penniless and naïve, he cannot pay for the journey and gets mugged. He eventually hitches a ride toLake Tahoeand appears, soaked and cold, at Maggie's doorstep. She realizes he has become mortal for her love, and they have sex. The next morning, as Seth is showering, Maggie rides her bicycle to a local store. On her way back, happy and fulfilled, she rides her bicycle with her eyes closed and her arms wide open. Her happiness is cut short when she fails to notice alogging truckcrossing her path and is gravely wounded in the collision.
Seth senses that Maggie is in trouble and runs to her aid. He arrives in time for her to tell him she sees the angel who has come to accompany her. Although Seth can no longer see angels, he senses one nearby and frantically begs Maggie not to look at them. She tells him she is not afraid anymore and that when they ask her what her favorite thing in life was, she will say it was Seth, and she then dies.
Grieving and alone, Seth is visited by Cassiel. He asks if he is being punished for becoming human, which Cassiel assures him is not the case. Sometime later, Seth expresses his joy in being human and the fact that he has accepted his new life by running into the ocean, feeling the waves at dawn, in sight of the angels.
City of Angelsinvokes the idea of thefallen angelin Seth's transformation into a human. However, author Scott Culpepper argues this is not related to evil or exile from heaven, and is instead based onfree will.The fact that Maggie is killed very shortly after Seth's transformation poses the question of whether Seth left "heaven for ashes", but the conclusion is that "the very temporality of relationships, experiences and feelings are what make them meaningful".Seth's realization is followed by the concluding scene in which he dives into the ocean, and the otherwise "stoic" Cassiel smiles for him. SociologistsAlbert BergesenandAndrew Greeleywrite that this communicates "not only the glory of being alive ... but the seeming approval by heaven of that choice".
WriterBrian Godawainterprets the film as having a "humanistic worldview" in which physical experiences humans can enjoy have more value to angels than the spiritual. However, Godawa feels this contradicts1 Peter 1:12, where "things which angels desire to look into" are spiritual truths in the gospel of theHoly Spirit.Encyclopedist Andrew Tate writes Maggie is a surgeon with no spiritual faith and, through Seth, she "learns to trust the invisible", while Seth learns the wonders of life through her.
Professor Christopher R. Miller observes Seth's book recommendation for Maggie isErnest Hemingway'sA Moveable Feast, but Miller suggestsJohn Milton'sParadise Lostwould have been more interesting. Miller contrasted Milton's epic, in which "angels were matter and spirit" and "sybaritic show-offs", with the depiction of the supernatural beings in the film.
Tate believes the fact that angels reside in libraries indicates that they represent "an age of reason, order and learning", though these principles led to decline in faith, contemplating Nathaniel's line "They don't believe in us anymore".Miller questions the "no one believes" line, pointing to 1998New Agebook sales, the playAngels in Americaand the television seriesTouched by an Angel.
On the choice of Los Angeles as a setting, Gabriel Solomons contrasts the depiction of the city as a door to heaven to other films depicting it as a "psychological dead end" or actual hell (as inConstantine).However, Professor Jeff Malpas says that, whereasWings of Desirewas informed by Berlin, Los Angeles, sometimes known in real life as the "City of Angels", "provides nothing more than a convenient location".
DirectorBrad SilberlingpraisedWim Wenders' 1987 Franco-German filmWings of Desire, calling it "truly the most incredible cinematic experience of observation of human detail".Silberling, while acknowledging Wenders' film was meant as a tribute toWest Berlin, remarked that it became "a larger human discussion".In 1989, at the initiative of producerDawn Steel,her company reached out to Wenders to purchase the rights for an adaptation.However, production was delayed, as Steel took the project toThe Walt Disney CompanyandTurner Entertainmentbefore finally settling atWarner Bros.Silberling secured the position of director after his success with the 1995 film adaptation ofCasper.
While Steel's husbandCharles Rovensaid she "felt that there was another movie in the idea forWings of Desire", screenplay drafts by various authors dissatisfied her.She subsequently selectedDana Stevensas screenwriter.Stevens professed admiration for Wenders' original and believed she could "capture its essence", while reconsidering itsnonlinear narrative. She also defended the California setting, saying "Los Angeles is metaphorically more representative of America than any other city ... It has every personality, and I like the idea of angels being among all these different ethnic cultures".
StarNicolas Cagesaid that moving the setting from Berlin in the time of theWallto Los Angeles demanded story changes, with heavier focus on romance.Silberling and Cage noted the project followed other angel-themed films, such asMichaelandThe Preacher's Wife, both released in 1996. They were unimpressed with these earlier films, and drew angel wings in theCity of Angelsscreenplay to identify parts they felt needed improvement.
Though Silberling did not use the black-and-white the angels see in the originalWings of DesireandFaraway, So Close!, the remake does borrow the idea of angels inhabiting libraries.Wenders and his crew also developed the costume design of overcoats for angels, with Wenders telling Silberling they experimented with costumes during production before deciding on this look.The ending of the story was altered, so Maggie is killed, a less happy conclusion than the original. Silberling equated this to a scene inWings of Desirewhere the angel protagonist goes to the side of a motorcyclist near death.
Silberling claimed there was minimal supervision from Warner Bros. throughout writing and filming, due to priority given to theBatmanfilm franchise.City of Angelswas the last film produced by Steel and Roven before her death, and it is dedicated to her.
Originally, Silberling envisioned employing novice actors in the lead roles, but acknowledged performers with the level of recognition of Cage andMeg Ryanwould attract support for the production.After having completedaction-orientedroles inThe Rock,Con AirandFace/Off, Cage was eager to star in a more profound film when he received Stevens' screenplay. He agreed to accept the role, noting the spiritual issues in the story and the impact it had on him, but not elaborating on his own beliefs.Ryan also agreed to accept the role of Maggie, remarking "I don't know if angels are floating around, but the idea that there's a guiding force is something I embrace".
Andre Braugher, an actor on the television seriesHomicide: Life on the Street, was able to work on the project whileHomicidewas on break before the beginning of itssixth season.His new co-starDennis Franzwas also starring on a police procedural series,NYPD Blue.
Cage said that with this role, he had to switch from his regular methods of constant movements to trying to be "effective" while often still.He remarked on having to adopt the mindset of a child, and act impressed by commonplace experiences such as feeling rain or sunlight.A rig for the camera was built for the scene where the angelic Seth sees Maggie look in the mirror, and the crew shot the mirror without the actors for one take so Cage's reflection could be edited out from the take with both.
Other special effects involved a "going to the light"afterlifedepiction, in which Seth walks with a little girl, played by Sarah Dampf, who has died. After cinematographerJohn Sealeshot the scene in a hallway,Sony Pictures Imageworks'John Nelsonincreased the brightness to end in white, adding splinters of light.
Some of the film was shot atLake Tahoe's surrounding areas andKern County.The "falling" scene was partially shot at theLos Angeles Bank of America, while Cage was placed on a moving rig over abluescreen.Ryan's death scene was filmed on Old Mill Road inCrestline, California.The library scenes were shot atSan Francisco Public Library.For angel scenes shot atMalibu Beach, though the characters are not physical beings, it was decided that the angels would have briefly visible footprints to avoid the perception that the sand was too hard to leave imprints. Thus, Nelson erased the footprints soon after they are first seen.
Thescorewas composed byGabriel Yared, often using three notes to convey ascent. Popsynthesizers, pianos and strings were used for the three-note compositions where the angels observe Los Angeles, where the child in the prologue dies and where Seth experiences Maggie's despair, respectively.Yared also employed violins and celli, sometimes using one to accompany a line ofvoice-overdialogue and another for follow-up dialogue.Choirs and distant voices reminiscent ofJürgen Knieper'sWings of Desirescore can be heard.
The soundtrack debuted at number 23 on theBillboard200chart on the issue dated April 18, 1998.Its two singles, theGoo Goo Dolls' "Iris" andAlanis Morissette's "Uninvited", were released to U.S. radio in March and were still receiving substantial radio airplay by August.
While composing "Iris" for the film, songwriterJohn Rzeznikdescribed feeling inspired to write the lyrics from the point of view of a character, rather than in his own voice.Music authorJohn Brahenywrote that Rzeznik's composition in "Iris" follows aformwhere a melody, represented by A, is givenAAA repetition, with an added repeating chorus lyric.
Intest screenings, Silberling said the film had favorable reactions, though with some confused viewers.City of Angelshad its debut at Los Angeles'Mann Theatreson April 8, 1998. The screening was held to benefit the Dawn Steel Putting Girls in the Picture Fund, in honor of Steel, who died in December 1997. Silberling, Roven and the stars were in attendance.The film's wider release in the United States took place during the weekend,distributed  byWarner Bros.
Warner Home Videopublished a special editionDVDin December 1998.In 2014, Warner Home Video released aBlu-rayinRegion A, withaudio commentaryfrom Silberling, Roven and Stevens.
The film opened first in the box office, making $16.1 million in its opening weekend.It displacedLost in Space, which was first in the box office for one week, after overtakingTitanic, first for 15 weeks.Titanicranked third behindCity of AngelsandLost in Space.City of Angelsreached the $100 million mark by October 26, 1998.
It finished its run after grossing $78,685,114 in North America and $120 million in other territories, for a total of nearly $200 million.WriterCraig Detweilerconcluded the remake drew more viewers than the original.
Meg Ryanreceived positive reviews for her performance.
The film has a 58% score onRotten Tomatoesbased on 60 reviews, with an average rating of 6.2/10. The site's consensus states: "City of Angelsmay not tug the heartstrings as effortlessly as it aims to, but the end results will still leave more than a few viewers in tears."The film has a rating a 54 out of 100 onMetacriticbased on 22 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
Roger EbertgaveCity of Angelsthree stars, saying Meg Ryan was at her best here, but the film was "more of a formula story" than the originalWings of Desire, and that many of its qualities were lifted from there.InVariety,Emanuel Levypositively reviewed Cage as "endlessly resourceful" and Ryan as "terrifically engaging".InThe Christian Science Monitor, Jennifer Wolcott compared it toGhost(1990) andContact(1997) as a U.S. film that could explore religion and love, highlighting Maggie's realization that her life will continue after the death of her blood cells, and that love is more than "a chemical reaction".Sun-Sentinelreviewer Roger Hurlburt praised the acting, direction and "profound" feelings, and advised readers, "don't forget theKleenex".Wenders was satisfied with the adaptation of his work, remarking, "It's done with respect, with a sense of discovery all its own".
The New York Times'sStephen Holdenwrote the standard romantic clichés were "sumptuously" displayed, Cage resembled aserial killermore than an angel, and he preferred Ryan.David Denbywrote inNew Yorkthat unlike Berlin, Los Angeles offers "the sunlit paradise" where people do not need convincing as to how nice life can be.Entertainment Weeklygave the film a C, with Owen Gleiberman describing it as "a hymn to sappiness".CNN's Paul Clinton dismissed the remake as a "schmaltzy" and "vapid" version ofWings of Desire.The Washington Post's Michael O'Sullivan dismissed it as "a mawkish debasement of its source material", asking "When will Hollywood learn to leave well enough alone?"Michael Wilmington gave it two and a half stars in theChicago Tribune, enjoying the appearance of the film but concluding it feels "forced and mechanically weepy".Writing forEmpire, William Thomas credited Silberling for "a fresh eye", but felt the film fell short in "philosophical claptrap".Andrew Johnstonwriting inTime Out New Yorkconcluded: "In the final reel, what began as a philosophical study of death and longing becomes a blatant tearjerker, but even then the accumulated momentum sweeps you along. Mainstream films are seldom more lyrical."
In 2012,Timeincluded it in its Top ten On-Screen Depictions of Heaven list, for its portrayal of the "go toward the light" afterlife experience.In his2015 Movie Guide,Leonard Maltingave it two and a half stars, judging it "still intriguing" though losing much of the atmosphere of the original.That year,Indiewire, in reviewing remakes, calledCity of Angels"a sickly bastardization" of its source material, though remarking Wenders himself was unable to duplicate its success with his 1993 sequel,Faraway, So Close!.In 2017,MSNincluded it in its 20 All-Time Worst Movie Remakes list, acknowledging it as a financial hit but "a schmaltzy tearjerker" compared to the poetry of the original.
City of Angels: Music from the Motion Picturereceived nominations at the41st Grammy Awards,and the film received nominations and awards at ceremonies honoring cinema: