DVD Review: The Tarnished Angels (1957)
Douglas Sirk’s melodrama about a Depression era reporter getting involved with the sordid lives of a stunt flyer, his wife, and his mechanic is a bit of a departure for the celebrated director. Choosing stark black and white cinematography over the lush Technicolor for which he is best known, "The Tarnished Angels" is an edgier, riskier, harsher drama.
Reuniting Rock Hudson, Dorothy Malone, and Robert Stack – the three leads from his “Written on the Wind” (1956), Sirk works from source material by William Faulkner (the lesser known “Pylon”) and turns in what he himself considered his best work (Faulkner also believed it was the best movie adaption of any of his books).
Stack is the classic 50s male of Sirk’s melodramas, even though this movie is set during the Depression-era 30s. A former World War 1 flying ace, Stack now spends his macho posturing as a stunt flyer at air shows, with his wife (Malone) acting as a daredevil parachute jumper. His mechanic (Jack Carson) wavers between heartfelt devotion and angry rebellion regarding the way Stack treats his wife and their young son. At one point, when a plane crashes, he arranges to purchase another by offering his wife’s services for a night to the plane’s owner – a burly, fat businessman. Rock Hudson is a reporter who is at first fascinated by the seamy underbelly of the three, but soon finds himself part of the order when he becomes involved with the neglected Malone.
Sirk wisely chose to shoot this film in black and white, to help with the visuals of this Depression-era drama. Several scenes are set at shows where amusement rides fill the negative space in Sirk’s wide establishing shots. There are many exciting sequences, including a few plane crashes that brilliantly executed and shot. The performances are magnificent, right down to supporting roles by the likes of William Schallert, Robert Middleton, and a young Troy Donahue.
As with most of Douglas Sirk’s films, “The Tarnished Angels” was well received by moviegoers, but critics dismissed as a veritable soap opera. The edgier material was another problem in the more conservative 1950s. What contemporary critics did not see, and what later critics noticed, is Sirk’s keen satirical vision that permeated all of his work. The characters degrade themselves in dangerous situations, they challenge their own morals in regular life, and Sirk explores the layers of each character just as reporter Hudson does upon confronting the odd trio.
Stack is all brashness and swagger, Hudson is darkly intrigued, Malone is sultry and cynical, and Carson wavers from bluster to confusion to anger. While each actor is exceptionally good, Carson’s and Hudson's performances might be the best.
The blu ray from KINO is a beauty, enhanced by the always welcome and informative commentary by Imogen Sara Smith whose knowledge is deep and fulfilling. She discusses how Sirk had wanted to make a movie of the Faulkner novel for some time, and how his success allowed him to take on such a project. Her commentary is fascinating, as usual, helping us better appreciate this fine film.
Top actors, a director whose work has enjoyed a growing status, and edgy source material, “The Tarnished Angels” is one of the 1950s strongest melodramas. It can be ordered here: The Tarnished Angels.