User Reviews

The year 1969 was a special one. It was a turbulent time for sure in the world, where in the USA, a ton of people rebelled against the government and big business to create peace through sex, drugs and rock n' roll. Needless to say, Woodstock, one of the biggest music concerts took place in 1969. Not only that, film impacted tons of people of all ages back in the late 60s and early 70s in the form of change. Whether it was political, religious, societal, or cultural redesign; most people were embracing this change, and movies helped a bit in leading that bandwagon.

One of the forgotten films from the late 60s was a film called 'Angel, Angel, Down We Go', however it is now called 'Cult of the Damned'. Probably a good move, since this film needs all the help it can get to keep people interested, despite Lou Rawls and Roddy McDowall starring in the movie. In fact, director Robert Thom and actress Jennifer Jones had more interesting lives than this film, but that's besides the point.

This was the only film Thom ever directed, but he did go on to write a few of the 'Death Race' films along with a few other B-movies. Jennifer Jones was actually married to big time producer David O. Selznick (King Kong) until his death, where she attempted suicide and was found unconscious at the bottom of a cliff. Her daughter then committed suicide by jumping out of a 20-story window. It's a very sad story, but this film 'Cult of the Damned' was the first film Jones did after her attempted suicide, so I imagine she had quite a few things going through her head that she could relate to in the film.

The film follows a young girl named Tara (Holly Near) who we see as a child at the start of the film. Her father Willy (Charles Aidman) a wealthy airplane businessman who has a sexual secret and her mother Astrid (Jennifer Jones), a free-spirited adult film star send their daughter off to a commune where she can be a free spirit. Time goes by and Tara ends up at a boarding school where she is taught ethics and manners, which her free-loving parents might not be happy about.

In order to have their daughter be socially acceptable and free-thinking, they throw her a party where a rock-star named Bogart (Jordan Christopher) takes a liking to the young girl. Bogart comes with his bandmates as well, which include Lou Rawls and Roddy McDowall. Bogart and his bandmates have a sinister plan though. They aim to tear this family apart piece by piece, by manipulating everyone into despair. Bogart uses extreme sports and sex to lure his victims in, and when Tara is no longer paying attention to him, he sets his sights on Astrid. '

Cult of the Damned' has a good set up, although it's one we've seen before. I take it that Thom wanted to show us the temptation of the sex, drugs, and rock n' roll, and how a young girl had to struggle with that along with her insane home life and unorthodox relationship with her parents. It's hard to believe that anyone would follow or listen to this slime ball of character in Bogart, as he seems to be a budget Jim Morrison of The Doors. That and the fact that this movie runs at a snail's pace, ultimately bring down the whole experience. 'Cult of the Damned' is intended to shock you, but falls short.

These IMDb comments intrigued me enough to order this, but the film as a whole is a mess that left me tired. A few scenes stand out--I actually sort of dug the music, and Jordan Christopher shirtless and in leather pants as Bogart is easy on the eyes. Despite her top billing, Jennifer Jones simply isn't in the film much at all, and while she seems attractively well preserved, her closeups are filmed through Vaseline and she wears yards of billowing fabric in most of her costumes, so it's hard to say. I thought it was funny that when she finally hooks up with Bogart she cries out "I'm 50!" (her actual age when this was filmed). The references to Tara, "Gone with the Wind," and Jones' reaction to it all are interesting but muted. For all the drama of the advertising, this film was surprisingly plain and underwhelming. The trippy cutaways to hallucinations are overdone, but worth watching at least once.

If the psychedelic visuals here have any purpose, it's to make me forget about the horrendous use of classic film clips in the following year's "Myra Breckenridge" which I consider one of the most pointless films of all time. I've now found a close second in this bizarre film that I wish I could categorize. Comedy? Musical? Perhaps horror film. At least in the career of Jennifer Jones, that would be close. with all her problems in the late 60's, her decision to return to the screen with this dribble is as laughable as the memory of Claire Trevor in "Two Weeks in Another Town", Eleanor Parked in "An American Dream", Elizabeth Taylor in "Boom!" and Lana Turner in "The Big Cube", hideous examples of legends overacting. Susan Hayward in "Valley of the Dolls" can rest easy with her performance as an aging Broadway star when compared to Jones' faded movie star who once did stag films and is now stuck in a marriageto the powerful Charles Aidman who flaunts his affairs with men in her face.

The narration by their daughter Holly Near indicates that she doesn't believe that her father is homosexual, but it's right in front of her face. At her coming out party, near literally falls for folk singer Jordan Christopher who takes her out for an adventure, removed her virginity, and introduces her to his weird friends which include Roddy McDowall and Lou Rawls. They return to nearest mansion where the cult-like group interlopes in the family in various bizarre ways that will have you either gasping or laughing, and with it, not at it.

The only thing I can say about Holly Near's performance is that she resembles a young Ricki Lake from "Hairspray" and Divine as Dawn Davenport in taffeta in "Female Trouble". Unfortunately, this doesn't have to lovable quotient of John Waters early films, and when it attempts to be gentle, it is obviously fooling itself and the audience who falls for that. These aren't performances. They are cartoonish examples of characters who have never existed, and if this is any representation of the late 1960's, I'm surprised that the world lasted until the 80's. The script is filled with one idiotic line right after another, but it is too fun to hear the stars of this film come out with one lou-lou after another.

Certainly it's glorious to look at as a time capsule, but it is embarrassing for fans of Jones who remember her for her glory days that were just a few years before. references to pop icons of the time only dated further, and the use of a large changing painting with strange visuals just makes it all the weirder. the fact there is really no structure to the story, just a series of ridiculous situations right after another and leading to an improbable outcome, makes this a work of art that has far too many colors on the canvas that makes the outcome truly tacky.

Although most people looking for the conventional "good" movie may balk at this picture's entertainment value, all I can tell you is that there's scarcely a boring moment to be had. Quintessential viewing for anyone interested in the downside of the psychedelic era with enough of writer/director Robert Thom's eloquently bad taste purple prose to keep one in a state of perpetual jawdropping incredulity.

Jennifer Jones is a washed up (though rich) movie star and former porn actress married to cynical, houseboy-shtupping Charles Aidman. Overweight and screwed up Holly Near (soon to enjoy moderate folksinging fame) is their daughter. Through her, machiavellian wannabe popstar and unstated mini-cult leader, Jordan Christopher (the young hip actor who married Sybil Burton after Richard left her for Liz), worms his way into the household. He brings along his entourage, too -- which includes Roddy McDowell and Lou Rawls! Slowly Christopher amps up his mind games, and, with the aid of plenty of psychedelics, seduces everyone in this rotten-to-the-core family. Imagine Thom remaking Pasolini's TEOREMA in the AIP drive-in mindset with Southern California literary/theater pretentions and you'll get a pretty good idea of what to expect. I won't throw in any specific spoilers but Christopher wreaks havoc with all concerned. Suffice to say a couple of characters shuffle off this mortal coil (in other words, die!). Although not possessed with as much manic energy as the previous film Thom had written for AIP -- WILD IN THE STREETS (directed by Barry Shear) -- this is much more uncompromising in its bad trip vision of Southern California upper-crust-show-biz hypocrisy and the poisonous underbelly of the then-current youth culture. An appropriate movie to come out in 1969, the same year that brought us Altamont and the Manson-killings.

WILD IN THE STREETS had done really well at the boxoffice and I suppose that's how Thom had convinced AIP to let him direct. Unfortunately ANGEL, ANGEL... flopped dismally finally rereleased as CULT OF THE DAMNED (under which title I recorded it on video off a censored, commercial interrupted USA Network showing back in the mid-80s -- it hasn't been on TV since, at least on the west coast). Apparently this wasn't one of the titles MGM/UA picked up from Orion (who in turn had picked up most American International Pictures rights). So, this is close to being a lost film -- although hopefully the producer, Jerome Katzman (?) may be out there somewhere with elements. If anyone's out there who knows him you should tell him this would probably do extremely well with a DVD release through someone like Anchor Bay or Image, companies who know how to promote great retro sixties trash.

The years 1967 to 1969 were a veritable gold mine of kooky, product-of-their-time films like; "I Love You, Alice B. Toklas," "The President's Analyst," "Candy," The Magic Christian," and "Valley of the Dolls." Some were very funny, some had things to say about society, others were really campy and outrageous. This film is nowhere near as memorable as those films are. It's not funny or campy or clever enough to even warrant a second viewing, let alone cult status.

The main character, Tara Nicole (Holly Near), isn't all that sympathetic. We're supposed to feel sorry for her because she's the pudgy and plain daughter of beautiful mother, Astrid (Jennifer Jones), and wealthy war-hero father, Willie (Charles Aidman), but she just seems like such a dope. Her parents might've been distant but they're billionaires. She gets to wear half a jewelry store to her debutante party and indulges in hobbies like flying. She's pathetic enough to stick around after her love-interest seduces her mom, hoping for another chance with him. Then there's the scene where Tara suddenly remembers that she may have been molested as a child and she smiles a creepy, ecstatic smile. Eeew.

What was Jennifer Jones thinking?! I'm guessing that she needed the money. There's no question as to whether she's still the same fine actress who starred in "Song of Bernadette" and "Portrait of Jennie," since she actually manages to keep a straight face while reciting the following dialogue...

"In my heart of hearts, I'm a sexual clam."

(To her masseuse) "Stop it, Hopkins, you're hurting me. You bloody sadistic dyke!"

(When asked if she likes Bogie) "Yes but he is the sort that makes you take all sorts of tranquilizers before breakfast, isn't he? And wash them down with bloodys."

(To her simpering daughter) "You ARE a fat girl, idiot! I don't know why anyone would even touch you!"

"...I'm not of your generation. I only get drunk. Occasionally. I only take pills. Sometimes pills work with liquor. Teamwork."

"I made 30 stag films and I never faked an orgasm."

"I was champion leg-wrestler at Santa Monica High."

The one time I laughed out loud while watching this was when Tara asks Astrid (who is 50), "Could you still have children, Mother?," and Astrid replies, haughtily, "You really are retarded! I could bring forth nations!" What in the hell was the person who came up with that smoking?!

Jones was the widow of "Gone With the Wind" producer David O. Selznick and there are several references to "GWTW" here. Tara got her name because Astrid was a fan. Bogie does a passable impression of Gerald O'Hara trying to instill the love of the land in Scarlett, etc. Would Selznick really have wanted his masterpiece alluded to in a wacko '60s film? If these references were added after Jones was booked to play Astrid, it seems so tacky and disrespectful.

When we first see the improbably-named Bogart Peter Stuyvesant (Jordan Christopher) he's the ersatz Jim Morrison hired to perform at Tara's coming out (in the original sense of the term) party.

Bogie's entourage is a band he's working with; Santoro (Roddy McDowall), Joe (Lou Rawls), and pregnant, blonde Anna Livia (Davey Davison). McDowall and Rawls are pretty much wasted here and not just because they look stoned much of the time. McDowall gave some really good and/or funny and/or touching performances in other kooky '60s films like; "Lord Love a Duck," "The Cool Ones," and "It!" but he doesn't have much to do here. His most dramatic scene includes the startling admission that he can get turned on just by staring at a carrot! Rawls never sings, except for a bit of backup miming during "Revelation." He actually looks sort of uncomfortable in a couple of shots, in a way that implies, "Oh, man, what was I thinking?!" All of the men hang on and pet all the women but no one gets to have sex except for alpha-male Bogie who beds them all.

Bogie's motivation in attaching himself to and destroying the Steele family is unclear. Normally, the hippie or anti-establishment characters in these types of films are all peace & love and anti-capitalism. When outsiders worm their way into a household, it's usually to profit in some way. Bogie has outbursts of casual cruelty. When he first meets Tara, he says that he isn't interested in her money because he just sold a record company for two million dollars.

He tells her, "American imperialism is your dream," slaps her savagely, and continues, "You have a right to that dream! You're not a bloody drop-out, enjoy yourself! And screw anyone who hates killing!" When Astrid asks him why he isn't in the army he replies, "Why should I go out and kill mere strangers...(chuckle)...when there are much more luscious pickings right here in my own backyard? In my own bedroom."

Mean, capitalist, threatening hippies. Is this supposed to be funny? Ironic? Is it supposed to be a parody of hippie films? I'm just not sure what the screen-writer was going for.

You wouldn't generally expect much from the soundtrack of a movie like this but all of the songs were written and composed by hit-makers Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil and Jordan Christopher was really a singer. The (original) title song is pretty good. "The Fat Song" is quite funny. Tara's "groovy" interpretive dance to it (clad in a gown with a diaphanous skirt) is the high camp moment of the entire film. "Revelation" could've been a song that got axed from the "Jesus Christ Superstar" soundtrack.

There are some real '60s touches here, namely, the collages used in the opening and closing of the film and interspersed, here and there, with music and sound effects. Then there's the drug-induced freakouts, where Tara's on the ceiling.

A couple of scenes would've been fairly startling to movie audiences at the time. Early on, there's a flashback of Willie showering with a younger man and then that same man sauntering around while the furniture barely hides his frontal nudity. Near the end, there's a rather unpleasant scene where a frenzied, sweat-drenched Bogie beats Willie with a chain.

Astrid's fate here is pretty predictable. Willie's not so much. It all just seems pointless. Tara's narration is pretentious and silly. Why does she sometimes seem to be affecting a British accent?

This film either needed to go campier or darker. It just doesn't work as is.

"Angel, Angel, Down We Go" was a much better title.

**Spoiler Alert**

I've been watching Jennifer Jones since I was in grade school. I clearly remember the Saturday night I watched "The Song of Bernadette" with my grandmother on television. As a kid in Catholic school, taught by nuns, it left quite an impact.

I mention this mostly cause I've had a life-long respect for Jennifer Jones and have made every effort possible to see as many movies of hers as possible. To say I was curious about "Angel, Angel Down We Go" would be the understatement of the year. I appreciate trash as much as the next movie-lover..but this one really tested my patience.

Its mean-spirited, its long-winded, its cinematic nonsense. I can't imagine what in the world possessed Jennifer to do this movie cause its, by light years, the worse movie she's ever been involved in. I have a feeling she was having one of her parties and Roddy McDowall and maybe even Lou Rawls was there and someone spiked the punch with acid and they all made a pact to do this movie as a lark. Either that or she lost a bet or owed on the landscaper but there had to have been some unexplicable reason why this movie...maybe Lana Turner was there was said that doing the "The Big Cube" wasn't worse than some of her marriages and so Jennifer figured what the hell, no one will ever see it. A biography I have of hers said she clearly did it for the movie, since AIP was paying stars like Vincent Price a lot for doing the movies he was making for them, and let's face it, you gotta eat..

I got a laugh or two. She mentions "Gone with the Wind" and it IS one of the only movies I can think of where the hairdresser, Sydney Guillaroff, is mentioned.

But her death scene was just as unpleasant as her death scene in "The Towering Inferno", and its just not bad enough to be good. I forgive you, and I think Showtime Beyond for unearthing it, and I am very glad I got to see it, but obviously it was not a lot of fun for me.

Speaking of "The Big Cube"..hey Showtime, how about it?