I have never been a fan of movie titles with subtexts (couldn’t this be called Angels Fallen? Or Warriors of Peace?) Not my call, of course but if I could add my 2 cents in, there it is.  

In Iraq, 2011, Sergeant Gabriel (a hum drum Burdett) and his squad encounter a heavy attack within a local area, leaving Gabriel with a gunshot wound to the chest and an honorable discharge from military service. Unfortunately, it also resulted in severe PTSD and an addiction to Zoloft. So, when the nightmares ensue and he begins to “hallucinate” a vision of the charismatic right-hand man to God, Balthazar (an aged yet still spunky Gooding Jr.), Gabriel decides to fulfill his wishes of recruitment into a new army: The Warriors of Peace. Compiled of his previous war vets, the team gears up with the belief that Gabriel will lead them to salvation and save the planet from destruction.  

While the world is recuperating from poverty, violence and other cracks in current affairs, the evil archangel, Michael walks freely amongst the common people to disrupt lives of hardcore criminals for his own recruiting purposes: The Soldiers of Darkness.  

The soldiers are made up of demons, some of which parlay into gargoyles with the likeness of a Ghostbusters’ gatekeeper. Not very convincing. While dodging these hellish creatures in order to defeat Michael and save mankind from destruction, we are granted a few comical moments from the “clever” Trigger whose timing is as spot on as Lady Gaga fashion. “Do you take crypto?” is asked of a stripper once his pocket cash has been emptied and the crowd goes…null. As silly as it is, the time and place for such humor is unrelatable.  

So, we now have the biblical stage set of good vs evil, compounded with a Gabriel, a Kane, (who defeated Abel), a priest called “Padre” and other obvious theological names that are quite evident in their religious nature. Creative? Not really, but let’s press on as the plot does thicken…  

For those wondering what ever happened to Denise Richards, she is alive and well and has become a staunch weapons expert siding with the divine power that has been directing this battle course. Deborah (Richards) is fierce, direct, and ruthless. She commands her onscreen time with a slight touch of femineity amongst the testosterone driven group of motleys. And to round off the cast of the past, the dynamic William McNamara makes an appearance as Roman the “Picasso Butcher”. As if it were pulled right out of Copycat, McNamara’s warped killer proves to be a wasted opportunity. Completely and disappointingly short-lived.  

The characters are in place, the arena is set and now we wait for the frontline to strike. Pretty simple, huh? But there’s nothing simple about Angels Fallen, including its’ title.