Flickers on the Wall: Cinematic Angels

I can’t say that I’ve been feeling particularly holy of late, yet I admit to a fascination with angels, and being who I am, a fascination with angels in short film. Those powerful, inexplicable, often death-dealing, messengers of God have had an odd history in cinema. Biblically, they are awe-inspiring, but in movies they tend toward the familiar and comfortable.

They’ve made their presence known since the silent era, but their heyday was the 1940s with the rise of what’s alternately been called Film Blanc, White Film, or simply Heavenly Accountancy Fantasies. Such features as Beyond Tomorrow (1940), Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941), It’s a Wonderful Life (1946), A Matter of Life and Death (1946), Down to Earth (1947), and For Heaven’s Sake (1950) blur the distinction between ghosts and angels, and present a fog shrouded, glaringly white (in every way) Heaven where bureaucracy is king. Greater angels are wise middle managers while lesser ones are near-human bumblers. The philosophy passes conservative and sits comfortably between righteous and fascist, but the theology is oddly big-tent, accepting even Hellenistic gods and keeping God (with a big “G”) vague enough for most Western churches. Sure, women who aren’t focused on having babies are chastised in several flicks, but at least they aren’t required to be Protestant women.

Film Blanc hasn’t died, though it is mottled with clear signs of rot. Defending Your Life (1991), What Dreams May Come (1998), and several unpleasant remakes have kept it gasping along. Are we now too cynical for these fluffy comedy-melodramas? I don’t think so, only because cynicism has always been with us, though a shift in social norms has made a difference. Really, the problem is that when taken with sincerity, the Blanc world view is ludicrous and the values often offensive. Naturally, that’s not a problem in a pure, wacky comedy, but Film Blanc most often aims at the heart. The classics, such as Mr. Jordan, got by with clever dialog, top-notch casts, and a narrow focus. The not-so-classics (For Heaven’s Sake) didn’t get by at all, flopping like a long dead fish receiving electroshock.

With no Robert Montgomery, Claude Rains, or Edward Everett Horton to cast, Film Blanc is in need of a makeover. A shorter running time is called for so there’s no time to dwell on the inconsistencies and disturbing morality of heaven, and perhaps, just perhaps, that “white” needs to be grayed up a bit. That’s exactly what Todd Downing does with Ordinary Angels (37 min. Director/Writer: Todd Downing), a gothic Film Blanc for the reality TV generation. Seen from the point of view of field operatives, Ordinary Angels is a celestial take on Cops, but with a plot. Afriel (Protector of Children) is on edge. A “shake-up in admin” four centuries ago has left him without clear guidelines, but really he’s just tired of the never-ending war with the fallen and the number of times he’s been forced to retreat. Over the course of two days, a treaty break and several human deaths put Afriel, his boss Micah, and other angels into direct conflict with Lucifer and the fallen, and an unspecified documentary team is on hand to catch all the action. It seems that it’s work as usual, but something bigger is going down, something to do with the eternal plan.

With black clothing, swearing, blood spatter, and murder suicides, Ordinary Angels seems far removed from its angelic predecessors, but it isn’t. Heaven is still a place where red tape rules, angels look human, emotions run wild, and the target is once again the viewers’ hearts. This is Frank Capra, well, after he discovered the joys of mascara and spent the night getting down in a shadowy club to the newest dark wave tunes. Really, that’s what Capra always needed. This is an odd film on paper, shot with shaking cameras in natural lighting, where the action is mainly arguing and can be broken at any time for a face-to-face with the audience, but it is compelling. I found myself lost in its world within minutes and then couldn’t look away. Did I care about the characters and the outcome? I’m not sure, but my eyes were locked on the screen when I first saw it, and then again later in a festival hall. And now today, when I viewed it in my living room for this column, I once again found myself mesmerized.

Angels aren’t always minor officiaries, and Film Blanc, even darkened, isn’t the be all and end all. The most common image in cartoons, greeting cards, and fine art is the winged “hallelujah angel.” These beautiful creatures sing (presumably of God’s glory, but since they aren’t chatters, it’s up for interpretation), spread their impressive wings, and do little else. Surprisingly, they are absent from religious films but have made minor appearances in horror, and in the inspired short Jakob and the Angels (13 min. Director: Ron Lehmann Writer: Justin Haden, based on a short story by Audrey Niffenegger).

Jakob Wywialowski is a lonely, gruff man well into midlife whose calm universe is being upended by noise. Lots and lots of noise. The source: a flock of angels that has settled in his attic. Yes, Jakob has an angel infestation. They sing day and night, and Jakob can’t get any peace. How do you get rid of pests? Why, call an exterminator of course.

Made with the skill of a modern Hollywood blockbuster, but filled with the charm of a late ‘30s screwball comedy, the heart of a ‘40s sleeper, and the twisted sensibilities of an indie, Jakob and the Angels is a delight from beginning to end. It also supplies important information, such as how to explain over the phone that you have angels in your attic and the importance of home angel-proofing. There’s meaning here if you are inclined to look, but the laughs are the big draw, and there are a lot of them. Jakob can be caught at the Newport International Film Festival on June 4^th.