Best movie of this year hands down!

So much average

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

How does one get a storyline this flat, smeared out over nearly 2 hours? In fact, only 4 thing happen: angel falls for girl, girl falls for angel, angel falls for girl, and I will save you the spoiler.The movie lacks the artistic edge that Wings of desire had. Nicolas Cage does not portrait an angel as you would expect; he's just a weirdo. And personally, I don't find Meg Ryan the type of woman to fall in love with.Which leaves only one plus to the movie: Alanis Morisette's Uninvited at the ending credits.

Exactly as I thought: this film scored highly with viewers who either (presumably) hadn't seen the original Wings of Desire or who wouldn't know a great film if it was sitting on the screen in front of them - pretty much the same thing really. If you've seen and appreciated the brilliant Wim Wenders original, don't bother with this syrupy, implausible, ill-conceived and ill-written dumbed-down mush. Of course the acting is decent enough and the film manages to manipulate our emotions expertly enough... but some of us want more from a film. Wings of Desire is beautiful, artistic and profound... this film is mass- market pap.

This is an... interesting little film, and certainly a curious one. While many consider it to be a dumbing down of the movie it was based on, the 1987 art-house film called 'Wings of Desire', there still are a few touching elements to this film that keep it afloat. But at the same time there are a lot of things that really don't do it any justice.So what's the sketch? Nicolas Cage plays an Angel named Seth, who, like the other Angels, watch over humanity and act in many different ways to protect them. In one of their many roles, Seth plays the Angel of Death, taking the spirits of those who have passed and guiding them to everlasting paradise. Whilst overlooking the desperate attempts of a surgeon named Maggie (played by Meg Ryan) to give a man life-threatening surgery, he is amazed by her determination to keep the man alive, even though her efforts are ultimately in vain. Seth soon forms an attachment to her, and makes himself known, soon desiring to give up his Angelic stature to become human so he can live his life with his new found love.First, let's talk about the bad stuff. Nicolas Cage, although a very good actor, wouldn't have been my first choice. He doesn't really look or sound the part, my preference being to him in action movies such as the Rock and Con-Air. His scenes come off less romantic and more, well, creepy. Meg Ryan plays her part well though as the determined surgeon, pulling off her lines and role in a way you can find believable.The next big problem is the story, which is quite literal and not particularly subtle. Although there are quiet moments and subtle scenes in it, these are offset by Seth taking a literal fall from a tall building to denote his Fallen Angel status, truncated moments later by a brutal mugging. The ultimate goal of Seth is also a bit more 'shallow' to my mind, with his motivation to be with Maggie not being based on a long lasting and loving relationship, but immediately with them losing their clothes and making friendly under the covers. Indeed sex is one of the most serious commitments to any relationship short of marriage, it does seem like a bit of a rush to that particular finishing line, which I found rather jarring.But what about good stuff, of which there is quite a bit. The emotional scenes are played really quite well, especially the death of a young girl at the beginning and her guidance to Heaven by Seth, as well as a tragic but somewhat predictable passing later in the movie.But for me the best part of this entire movie is the soundtrack, with the absolute gem that is Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls being well worth the price of admission!So, to summarise, this movie is really a movie with its heart in the right place, but some of the routes taken to that particular heart being a little, well, risky. Whilst Nicolas Cage, the unsubtle nature of the story and some of the predictability can take you out of it, the emotional scenes, human interaction and that fantastic soundtrack was enough to see me through this film!Definitely a brain-disengaged movie, but a good film for a rainy Saturday afternoon!

City of Angels is that rare movie that taps into the same emotions as the best pop songs. It's not a deep movie. It's sentimental and it hits all the right emotional buttons.Like many great pop songs it celebrates the power of romantic love. In this instance, it celebrates the fantasy of the perfect love and lover as an angel. Because angels are divine and don't tell lies and make promises they don't intend to keep.Both men and women find this movie romantic, and that's unusual.Now, this movie is nothing to do with 'Wings of Desire', the film by the German auteur Wim Wenders - except for the original concept. It's definitely not a remake and implying it is sells both films short. They could not be more different: one is Coke and the other is Champagne.A lot of people were disappointed by this movie because they expected to see an adaptation of a European Art film without subtitles. Lovers of art films need to learn to read subtitles.For me, City of Angels is simply that one unforgettable summer. It's a glorious night of slow dances under a night sky full of stars. An ode to that one incredible impossible love and how close a dream came to being real.