I revisited the blu-ray of ANGEL HEART (1987) the other evening and couldn't help but notice nearly all the elements of neo-noir with the exception of an obvious femme fatale---and there's even one of those lurking in the back story. Even though I really like this movie, I'd never given much thought as to its genre.

One definition of neo-noir I found online: "Neo-noir is a revival of the genre of film noir. ... The English translation is dark movie, indicating something sinister and shadowy, but also expressing a cinematographic style. The film noir genre includes stylish Hollywood crime dramas, often with a twisted dark wit." Yet a list of 330 neo-noir films did not include ANGEL HEART.

A large Wikipedia list of neo-noirs does, however, include ANGEL HEART and calls it an "American neo-noir psychological horror film." That just about nails it in my estimation. Has this film ever appeared on any of our Blackboard lists? Does anyone else here agree with the conclusion that ANGEL HEART is in fact neo-noir---and a good one at that?