At first glance you might think this is another variation on such celestial fantasies as Here Comes Mr. Jordan, but Angel on My Shoulder (1946) is really the flip side of the same story. Here's the set-up: a murdered gangster named Eddie Kagle (Paul Muni) winds up in Hades, not Heaven, and gets offered a rare chance by the Devil (Claude Rains) to come back to earth and reside in the body of a saintly judge. Revenge is the motivating force in Eddie's decision to return but, once he accomplishes his mission, he doesn't intend to pay the Devil his due.

Paul Muni was an unlikely choice for the lead because of his association with such serious dramatic roles as Scarface and I am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang but clearly, as this film demonstrates, he could have had a career as a world-class farceur. As proof, we submit the scenes involving Eddie's transition from a vulgar thug to a refined and respected pillar of the community.

Offscreen, the laughs were few and far between. Archie Mayo, the director, and Muni didn't always see eye to eye on how the story should be played, arguing constantly and creating enormous tension on the set. Another unfortunate situation developed when a grip fell to his death from a scaffold toward the end of production. Now that we've painted such a bright and sunny picture of what was happening behind-the-scenes on Angel on My Shoulder, would you believe that this is really a delightful and underrated comedy?

Director: Archie Mayo
Producer: Charles R. Rogers
Screenplay: Harry Segall, Roland Kibbee
Cinematography: James Van Trees
Music: Dimitri Tiomkin
Cast: Paul Muni (Eddie Kagle/Judge Parker), Claude Rains (Nick/The Devil), Anne Baxter (Barbara Foster), Erskine Sanford (Minister), Onslow Stevens (Dr. Matt Higgins).
BW-102m.

by Jeff Stafford