We're No Angels (1989)

"We're No Angels" is a movie made for those faces, and one of the pleasures of watching the film is to see them looking sidelong at each other as they try to figure a way out of the complicated mess they're in. The movie has a lot of other good stuff to look at (including dramatic period locations in a small Canadian town) and to listen to (dialogue by David Mamet), but I can think of no other recent movie in which so much of the pleasure lies in watching the expressions on the faces of the actors - especially when they're reacting, not talking. Mamet and Neil Jordan, who directed the movie, wisely remember the most important thing about any mistaken- identity comedy: The fact that someone's identity is mistaken is not always funny even the first time and rarely thereafter. Movies that depend on mistaken identities for their laughs are among the slowest, dreariest slogs through cinema.

Too bad that the film came out to be both simplistic and ordinary despite of the talent involved especially when it features De Niro and Penn,two of the best actors in Hollywood; and Jordan,one of the finest director of the industry.There were a lot of boring moments.Also,it just turned out to be somewhat corny and provides minimal laughter in a lot of scenes.Overall,it was definitely a misfire from the cast and the director involved as it does not live up to its potential.

Overall rating: 6 out of 10.

Fmovies: Saw this movie many years ago and really enjoyed it. My best friend has recently gotten on a Sean Penn kick, and I suggested he rent this. We watched it last night, and I again realized it's a very good story.

Two important comments.

First, it's not a comedy, as in a fall-on-the-floor, laugh-your-head-off, side-splitter. If you're looking for that, check out the Stooges, thank you.

Second, the story is about miracles. Both the lower case miracles that happen all the time to people, as well as the upper case MIRACLES that may change our lives. The Writer and Director focus much of the action on how we make miracles happen for one another without some divine intervention; pay close attention to the drawing of the name in the lottery.

And, if you don't spend time in liturgical circles as I do, you need to understand that the types and stereotypes in the ecclesial environment are real, in particular John C Reilly as the eager young Novice, and Wallace Shawn as the Translator/Master of Ceremonies. Last, kudos to Hoyt Axton, for his sincere, underplayed portrayal of the Abbot (Father Levesque); great men like that really do exist in some communities.

So Funny you need a friend with you to laugh with...yet sincere! This film is thrilling, exciting, clever, and educational & did I mention funny... truly an excellent ride! I found myself moved towards each of the characters, especially Sean Penn, which was an eye opener for me, as I am not much of a fan... yet he's character was a softer, deeper innocence! Demi more plays the buxom strong woman as usual, not that I am faulting her, when it comes to Demi I am a concrete fan, also a great fan of Robert Deniro, who also plays a strong survival character! They all work well together to bring us an education of it's projected time, & a good honest chuckle!

We're No Angels fmovies. I felt that this movie was a good movie. It had great actors, a great plot, and a great environment, which is the church in which the escape convicts fled and hid to. This movie really got me thinking about how short life is and how we should spend it the best way possible, which Sean Penn did at the end of the movie, which is to love and serve God.

Some movies become forgotten over the years, and "We're No Angels" is one of them. It's not a great comedy, but it's not a bad one, either. It's far more serious and moralistic than I had ever imagined, and Robert De Niro and Sean Penn essentially run around posing funny faces for the camera throughout, whilst the Catholic religion is used as a structural backdrop. It's a very different sort of role for De Niro, whose comedy is usually a bit more sophisticated. Here he barely talks at all, and when he does, it's usually harsh barking or screaming or frustrated whispers. It's not De Niro's most memorable role but it's certainly an unusual one.

A lot of the movie focuses on mishaps and misconceptions, as all of the movies from this genre do. It bears resemblance to last year's "School of Rock," about a loser who was mistaken for a teacher. This time the loser is equal to a pair of two escaped convicts and the teacher position is likewise that of priests.

The story all begins with Ned (De Niro) and Jimmy (Penn) escaping from a northern jail circa 1930. After heading for the Canadian border, they find themselves pursued by a ruthless jail warden and a town of do-gooders. Luckily for the duo, right before they come to the Canadian border, they are mistaken for two long-lost Catholic priests, Fathers Brown (Penn) and O'Reilly (De Niro). After given an introduction to the area by a fellow priest (Hoyt Axton), they decide to hide out for a while using their new personas. No one would ever suspect a priest, right?

The problem is that Fathers Brown and O'Reilly are supposed to be two of the smartest priests alive, having written a controversial book about the true meaning of the chapter Revelations in the Bible. So you can imagine the fear that Jimmy experiences when he is asked to lead the church in a pray prior to a meal.

Meanwhile, the mandatory romance is inserted into the movie, using Demi Moore's single, rough, over-protective mother as the love angle for De Niro's character. Demi spits out an unconvincing northern accent, as De Niro stares at her a lot with critical eyes and tries to get her into bed. The romance is not necessary but it seems a lot more worthwhile than most of the romances in some of these films.

The movie is one of the most forgotten I have ever seen; I'd never really heard of it prior to purchasing the newly-issued DVD. But I figured De Niro and Penn couldn't be that bad, and I was right.

I think part of the reason so many people like to ignore it is that it doesn't poke fun at religion. It doesn't make the clergymen out to be strange idiots. Rather, it makes the two escaped convicts seem out-of-place in a heartwarming place. The spirituality affects Penn's character, Jimmy, and his final decision on the bridge that separates Canada from America is one that we have sensed was long coming since his fascination in the church grew.

De Niro and Penn have two of the best faces in Hollywood, and a movie like "We're No Angels" uses this to its advantage. Making up for the long gaps of laughter, the director, Neil Jordan, focuses more on his two lead actors and their reactions to situations. Most of the time throughout the film, De Niro shrugs his shoulders a lot and emits low, agreeable groans from his throat in response to questions, while Penn looks confused and bewildered. There's a great scene where an eager-to-please clergyman (John C. Reilly) ask

Everyone knows what a black comedy is. But is there is such a thing as a white comedy? I think so, and I think this is one of them. In the same way that '21 Grams' works a fairly serious portrayal of a crisis of faith into a tense melodramatic thriller, 'We're No Angels' actually masks some serious thoughtfulness about the importance of faith and hope into a decently funny comedy of mistaken identity. It also illustrates concretely the truth of C.S. Lewis's famous dictum (from the Screwtape Letters)that all men become what they are pretending to be.

The movie is very plotty and all the loose points neatly wrapped up. What a lot of the critics have missed is that all of the jokes are thematic, and tied to the central topics of the movie.

I am not at all conventionally religious, but I do appreciate faith, and I liked this movie quite a bit.