MovieChat Forums > An Angel at My Table (1990) Discussion > One of the Best films ever made that no ...

One of the Best films ever made that no one will see


This film simply blew me away. "The Piano" is awesome, but Campion will be hard pressed to top "Angel". All of the performances are amazing, but Kerry Fox should have won an Oscar. Her willingness to wear a rotten teeth prosthetic makes all the accolades Charlize Theron received for "Monster" seem very hollow indeed. Fox was nothing short of brilliant as she presented the conflicting emotions and reactions to her situation. The young lady who portrayed her as a frizzy haired youth was also outstanding, and the scene where she reads to her siblings and then they dance fairylike in the yard...MAGIC.
The first hour of the film is effortlessly charming, and the second hour is one of the most harrowing I've seen. It's rare to feel genuinely fearful for a character in a film, but her escape from the mental hospital made me weep like a little girl. That it is all true is even more compelling. There are moments in the film that transcend motion picture filmmaking and vault this gem into the realm of cinema as art. That it is the true story of Campions fellow Kiwi makes it even richer. Jane Campion is a serious artist as Frame was and it's truly a shame that so few people will ever see this film.

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Agreed. I think it's Jane's most brilliant film.
I disagree about Charlize Theron for Monster. That was an extraordinary performance!
Wish we could see more of Kerry Fox!

I'll tell you in another life, when we are both cats.

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I had to watch it over again because I kept getting interrupted the first time. It seemed boring the first time, but when I was really able to focus, I discovered so many lovely surprises. Even though it was a very long film, I didn't mind the repetition. The casting was very good.

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Completely agree with OP. Kerry Fox is a remarkably underrated actress deserving of an Oscar for this film. My favorite Campion movie by far.

91 Oscar nominees:

Jodie Foster, Silence of the Lambs (winner)
Laura Dern, Rambling Rose
Bette Midler, For the Boys
Susan Sarandon, Thelma & Louise

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One of the best movies I have ever seen also. My fave Campion movie (and this coming from someone who adores The Piano).

Pity the Criterion Collection DVD is so expensive. I wish they released it in bluray, but I think this is very improbable.

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Best film I have ever seen: THE TREE OF LIFE
Please forgive my English, I'm slowly trying to improve it.

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I agree, this is a beautiful film. I'm going to read up more on Frame and her life. The only thing I didn't like is that I wanted to see more! But the movie was already so long; I'm actually surprised that we got to see as much as we did.

I kept thinking about the hair though. I know it was auto-biographical so she had to have it but I don't understand. Any beauty salon could have thinned out the curls or done something. I guess she didn't care that much about it but I kept waiting the whole movie for her to make a change there. If she did it would sort of be symbolism for her changing herself as she grew, which she did.

In any case, it's not a movie for everyone. But it is a beautiful piece of art for those of us who can enjoy it for what it is.

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I just saw it on TCM during a night of Australian movies and loved it. Very sad at times and a true story, so even more interesting.

American voters will destroy the economy by 2016. Whoopsy-daisy!

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great that it was on!



today's special: shrimp ceviche!

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Every Friday night this month, Aussie movies. In other words, Friday nights this month TCM has actually had some interesting movies on in prime time for a change.

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cool! i see 'the plumber' is on friday. a fun movie.



today's special: shrimp ceviche!

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I will probably see that one, also. It sounds interesting. Also, the one about the wild party in 1969.

American voters will destroy the economy by 2016. Whoopsy-daisy!

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'don's party'?




today's special: shrimp ceviche!

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Yes, it's on next. Missed the Plumber.

American voters will destroy the economy by 2016. Whoopsy-daisy!

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'the plumber' is one of my fav films. such a simple & yet not so simple movie at the same time.




today's special: shrimp ceviche!

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Nuts!

I saw this film at a friends house. There are very few films that have impact that I think about it for days and days. An Angel... is one.
I searched everywhere to find it on VHS with no luck, and then finally there was the internet.

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awesome! they had a run of some aussie films on tcm in may. if you ever get a chance to see 'the plumber', do!!! it's really funny in a deranged way!




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CoraJack: Not changing her hair can be understood as Frame's accepting or at least tolerating everything idiosyncratic and superbly unique about herself.

Check out this superb poem by Diane Wakoski, "I Have Had to Learn To Live With My Face":
https://soundcloud.com/nova-convention-radio/diane-wakoski-o-i-have-had-to

(On a different note: You might be overestimating what hairdressers in a not-terribly-cosmopolitan nation were able to do back in the 1950s and 1960s; I have two cousins [in a large US city] with hair like Frame's, and thinning shears didn't enter their lives until the 1980s.)

"All you need to start an asylum is an empty room and the right kind of people."

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One of my favorite movies ever. I came away thinking about it and thinking about her for days after first viewing. I bought it on VHS.

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As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly.

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I couldn't agree more. It's a very fine piece of work. Far superior to The Piano, in my opinion.
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My God, it's full of stars!

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An amazing true story, wonderfully acted by Kerry Fox. An Angel at My Table is a fascinating character study and engaging drama. 10/10


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