Black Angel (1980)

Unlike many of the other reviewers, I had not seen this before. The short is quite light on plot, Sir Maddox comes home, only to hear that many are dead due to raiders and disease. He heads out after these raiders and has some "supernatural" experiences.The cinematography in this short is great, as is to be expected as the director was most known for his cinematography work. The short does not rely on characters as much as it does mood, ambiance, and so on. I'm sure it was nice to see this in cinemas because of this. The costumes are nice as well.The story is sadly not that interesting. Almost like a fairytale or a legend, it ends without really going anywhere. Things happen, but not memorable or that interesting.

34 years ago I went to the cinema to see one of the big box office films of the day. Back then they still had a short film before the main feature. I saw something that day which has stuck with me through the years. It made a huge impression on me but I couldn't remember what it was called or which film I had seen it with. There were just images in my mind, a knight slowly falling through black water, and the feeling that I had seem something special that day. It turns out the big box office film I saw after the short was The Empire Strikes Back. The short film itself was Black Angel but I didn't know it until the evening of 27th Feb 2014. Then I was lucky enough to be in the audience, including other folks like me who had seen it and had it lodged in their minds for 34 years, for the screening at the Glasgow Film Festival. I finally got to see it again and on the big screen to boot. To most it is probably of no interest but it is a cracking little mystical tale of a knight on a quest to save a maiden in distress. I would like to thank Andy Bryan, for tracking down the film, and Roger Christian, the writer and director, for giving me the chance to see it again. I don't know what you will think of it but it is a lost treasure found for me.

Like others, I saw this film as a child just before watching Empire Strikes Back,and to be honest until I read the recent news about it being rediscovered by Universal, I had forgotten it was a real film - it was so dream-like and ethereal. I have also seen 'Gawain and the Green Knight' and 'Excalibur' a few times and I guess all of them have become a bit mixed in my mind. The Black Angel was definitely a haunting piece of cinema, and I can't wait to see it again, and show it to my son - I am sure it would appeal to children today, even if it may seem a bit old-fashioned. I miss the custom of having a short film with the main feature - it was a nice tradition, although sometimes the short might seem a bit 'random'. Not this one though - it was excellent.

i remember it with empire strikes back but i saw it in London as well playing in front of firefox, i remember about 2 seconds of this film but so want to see it again, lets hope it turns up somewhere :)... The only part i remember is a long shot of the knight on a horse facing some sort of enemy, and the knight drowning but apart from that, nothing at all, i know i need to see this again as it made a lasting impression on me as a kid, if anyone has the rights to this small lost masterpiece then do the right and honourable thing, release it as an extra with something else i think it would do well on a DVD, I for one would go out and get it just for that extra...