Angel 4: Undercover

Well, I've been a life long fan of the original ANGEL trilogy. Even place the original ANGEL in my top 10 favorite films. Admittedly, AVENGING ANGEL kinda sucked, but is still enjoyable in its own stupid little way. ANGEL IV, however, is one incredibly long and boring movie with no production values, a stupid plot and a cast of actors who clearly don't want to be in this movie.

Every set design in this film is just that...a set...even the alleys! Cardboard walls...bad movie lighting...There even seems to be an echo in every room....yuk! The cast has several good names, but all are completely wasted. Sam Phillips, whom I adore, is practically asleep in her line delivery, and Darlene Vogel (as a suddenly blonde ANGEL) simply looks embarassed throughout. Suspense? None. Action? None. Interest? None. You're average Skinemax movie at 2 am looks more professional.

On a side note of curiosity, why did this become an action series when the original was a psycho-stalker film?

Rewatch the original, or better yet, go buy the boxed trilogy set on DVD and forget this installment even exists.

Don't be too hard on this made-for-cable flick and you just might dig it. I did! Angel 4 was made as a pilot for a proposed Angel cable series. It's an interesting curio that does have a certain degree of enjoyable cheesy charm. Too bad this made for cable TV pilot wasn't included as an extra in the excellent Anchor Bay DVD set of Angel movies. Darlene Vogel is quite adorable as Angel. There's also some nice female nudity that I enjoyed. The Axel Rose like character is a hoot! It's great to see the late great Roddy McDowall too! I took this Angel for what it was (low budget made-for-cable cheese) and had a ball.

Since this sequel was made for cable, it's not a bad thing. Molly/Angel(Darlene Vogel) is back, working for the police and away from the streets. Instead of doing tricks, she's now masquerading as a groupie. Why? Because one of her friends from the streets is following a musician who is a troubled soul. During the tour, he and his girlfriend overdosed. He was revived. She died. He continued to do drugs. Angel's friend Paula, continued to be close to him, until Jade(Sam Matthews) decided to say "Back Off!" With known stars like Roddy McDowell, Stoney Jackson, Patrick Kilpatrick, this movie is all right. The quality is questionable. There's a lot of suspense and suspicion. And plenty of sexual energy there. More musical than the other four films. And they used 4 different actresses playing Angel in each film. There's no need for cut downs. So what if this Angel is a blonde? I don't care! 2 out of 5 stars

This Flick is very Cool. I enjoyed it and it brought a new actor to my attention. Shane Fraser! Very interesting! If anyone knows what he's been up to resently let me know! Love & Light Angel