Rated: R
Stars: Jennifer Lopez, James Caviezel, Terrence Howard, Sonia Braga
Director: Luis Mandoki
Writer: Gerald DiPego
Although the trailers palmed Angel Eyes off as some kind of supernatural thriller, it’s really a romantic drama, offering a good female lead, well played by Jennifer Lopez.
Lopez plays Sharon Pogue, a Chicago policewoman who is tough and fearless and also quite lonely. She gets along with co-workers enough to joke and have drinks but then goes home to her small apartment where she lives alone. She dates no one. Years earlier she had her father arrested for beating her mother. Father has never forgiven her and the incident hangs like a dark cloud over her relationship with her whole family. It hurts her deeply because in her heart, Sharon knows that she did the right thing.
Then one day, a tall, dark stranger saves her life while she’s on the job. James Caviezel is “Catch”, a guy who’s mysteriously drawn to Sharon, although he doesn’t know why. He shows up at the bar where Sharon is celebrating with the guys and it’s the beginning of an unusual relationship between two people, where only one of them has any history. Catch is a virtual blank, smart and charismatic, but unemployed, roaming the streets of Chicago and occasionally doing good deeds for neighbors and their children. And although Sharon doesn’t know who he is and where he’s been, she’s willing to engage in the relationship because it’s the first time in a long time when she’s actually been happy.
It’s simply a matter of time before the mystery of his past comes to light, but in the meantime we are given an opportunity to explore how relationships develop as much out of desire as they do out of the need for self-revelation.
Lotta says: The strength of Angel Eyes lies in Jennifer Lopez’ character and acting skills. Lopez is totally believable as the feisty cop who can hold her own against Chicago’s badest and her emotions about her family ring true. But Caviezel seems to be doing a retake on his wounded homeless guy in Pay It Forward and it wears thin. The ending is way too pat to be believable but the getting there is not too bad an exploration of opposing personalities.
Reviewed 11/1/01