Truly the worst movie I've ever seen in a theater

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The story-telling is good with flashbacks.The film is both funny and heartbreaking. You smile in a scene and get a soulcrushing revelation in the next.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This is not a feel-good movie. However, it is a very good drama. For me, it made for good television viewing. It deals with the evil of murder and in this case, guilt does not get in the way. Joanne Froggatt, one of the stars of Downton Abbey as Lady Mary's servant and close companion, is the Dark Angel. Her role in this movie is totally different and she performs it superbly. This is not a glossy presentation and it shows with vivid reality, the hardship of life for both men and women. Men working in unskilled jobs are treated badly and their wives suffered the brunt of their humiliation. One of the interesting aspects of this movie is how she steps out of the role that was prescribed for women in Victorian times. She is very unhappy with how badly women of her status were treated and has no hesitation in using her cunning to survive. The movie deals with relationships, class, lust, secrecy, trickery, betrayal. Make no mistake, serial murder is no way to deal with life's unfairness. What this story shows is where desperation can lead. This woman is intelligent, beautiful and capable of strong friendship. The movie doesn't hold back in this honest portrayal of Victorian life.

Dark Angel (2016) was apparently seen in England as a two-part TV miniseries. We saw it as a full-length TV movie. It was directed by Brian Percival.Joanne Froggatt plays Mary Ann Cotton, England's first known female serial killer. There's no suspense here--the movie opens with the protagonist being led to the gallows. The movie then circles back to explain to us how events brought Mary Ann Cotton to her execution.Joanne Froggart must have been delighted to play this macabre role. All those years at Downton Abbey left her with the reputation as playing a fine person with a pure heart. Now she gets to play a far heavier role. She does a fabulous job with the part--you really do believe that she could, and would, murder people in order to get what she wanted.As portrayed in the movie, Mary Ann Cotton wasn't a demon, and she didn't start out with a view towards murdering her way forward. Victorian times were repressive for women, and a bad marital choice left a woman on her own with no obvious opportunity for escape. I'm sure many women dreamed about getting out of an unhappy marriage by murdering their husband. However, dreaming is one thing, and arsenic is another. It was easier to avoid detection as a serial killer at a time when many people died young of natural causes. Death was everywhere, and arsenic was readily available. (It was used to control vermin.) Apparently, it's still possible to buy arsenic. Here's a headline from The Guardian Newspaper: "Toxic chemicals such as strychnine, arsenic and cyanide are freely available for sale on the internet, leading toxicologists have warned." Not a happy thought.There's hardly a cheerful moment in this movie, and yet I enjoyed it. Joanne Froggatt is a brilliant actress. Freed from ensemble work, she can show the breadth and depth of her talent. Even if the film is depressing, it's still worth seeing just to watch Froggatt act.

Not sure which side of the bed (or whose) the other reviewer -ianlouisana got out of but maybe is a relation to Boris or permanently repressed. I found this two part serial compelling viewing, well researched, flavour and atmosphere of the times reminiscent of The Village with John Simm and Maxine Peake. Women in Victorian times had a place in society that was subservient and dependent upon male vanity and compassion. Not until after WWI, despite some notable exceptions, do they gain the independence of spirit and opportunity to exist outside the bounds of duty and childbirth. This tale relates the story of a tormented soul torn between the poorhouse and an institution she cannot or will not join. Serial killers deserve to be hanged (so was the punishment of the day) regardless of their gender. Watch and be moved by this TV drama.

Carelessly written (viz above) monotonously depressing,permanently gloomy piece that I have read elsewhere as being presented as a portrait of a "Strong Woman"in an overwhelmingly male - dominated society. Don't you believe it. "Dark Angel" allegedly tells the story of reputedly the first woman serial killer, a vicious yet pathetic creature who murders at will despite knowing she will assuredly hang( or because,possibly). Starting with a jolly scene in the Death Cell things go downhill quickly as the Dark Angel murders baby and adult alike until even the Victorian plod begin to suspect something about her is amiss. I daresay today she would plead childhood abuse and have any surviving children returned to her and be awarded a full - time team of social workers. Everybody overacts like mad and the Lothario gets a knee - trembler in the first reel before he even knows her name as far as I can make out. It has been said that Victorian working - class women either sold their bodies or sewed shirts ( a contemporary painting "The song of the shirt" offers the clues snapped up by eager middle - class Gallery - goers)The Dark Angel showed there was a "Third Way" with a result that was only too predictable.