Angel Baby

Travelling evangelist shows get the once-over in this modestly intriguing exposé, with newcomer Salomé Jens as the mute girl Jenny Brooks who throws herself at itinerant preacher Paul Strand (Hamilton), whom she believes responsible for restoring her voice. Her exploitation (as the testifying 'Angel Baby') soon gives cause for doubt that he's for real. Reynolds (minus moustache) made his film bow as the girl's best pal. The script skilfully adapted from the novel Jenny Angel by Elsie Oaks Barbour is set against the telling background of the the poverty-stricken farms of the American South. Evocative low-key camerawork from Haskell Wexler, and a first-rate performance from Mercedes McCambridge as the preacher's obsessive wife.