Angel on My Shoulder

Angel on My Shoulder

Archie Mayo’s last film as a director is overall pretty forgettable.  It’s watchable but really has no clear identity of its own, largely due to its underwhelming screenplay.  Paul Muni plays a gangster who gets out of prison and is killed by his underling.  He goes to Hell and Satan is played by Claude Rains.  The Devil gets an idea to send Muni back into the body of a judge so he can corrupt the judge’s reputation and claim his soul.  The judge’s wife is knockout and all-around sweetheart Anne Baxter, who of course Muni starts to fall for.  On paper, this seems it like has the potential for greatness, but it just doesn’t gel with any sort of cohesiveness.  I Married a Witch, Heaven Can Wait, and Here Comes Mr. Jordan (which was based on a play written by the writer of this film’s original story) all do this type of supernatural film better.  Mayo does a decent job directing, but better writing was needed and Muni’s performance felt a bit one-dimensional.

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