Almost an Angel
In 1986 Paul Hogan moved from being the spokesman for Australian tourism on the small screen to the surprise star of the surprise hit theatrical film, “Crocodile Dundee.” Two years later he made “Crocodile Dundee II,” and two years after that he made this comedy and married his constant co-star Linda Kozlowski. “Almost an Angel” is a better film than “Crocodile Dundee II,” and certainly the most intimate of Hogan’s first three films.
This time around he plays Terry Dean, an expert on security systems who was so good his criminal endeavors were easily recognizable who also took a turn at some creative attempts at bank robbery. The real story begins when Terry gets out of prison and becomes convinced that he has not only died but has been sent back to Earth by a heavenly being (who sure sounds and looks like Charlton Heston) with a chance to redeem himself. Since Hogan clearly believes this is what is going along, there is no reason for us not to go along for the ride.
Terry meets up with Steve (Elias Koteas), a guy in a wheelchair and the next thing we know he is being taken home, meeting Steve’s sister Rose (Kozlowski), and helping out at the center for the neighborhood kids. The formula is fairly obvious, but the point is not whether Terry is going to find his redemption but how he is going to pull it off. Ultimately the film’s message (yes, there actually is one) is relatively simple: Terry succeeds because he has complete faith in himself. It does not matter that his faith is without a true foundation, because Terry is too busy moving mountains to notice his grand delusion is built on shifting sand.
Once again, Hogan’s performance redeems a lot of the faults with the movie in which he is appearing. Since Hogan writes his own scripts he has the advantage of knowing exactly what works for his screen persona. Terry Dean is not as whimsical as Mick Dundee, but Hogan was clearly smart enough to try and get beyond that character. He was also smart to make a more intimate sort of movie, where the situation is what is out there more than the character. Hogan also knows how to set up his gags pretty well. “Almost an Angel” only made a fraction of the money by either of the “Crocodile Dundee” films, but it is arguably a better made movie.