ANGELS IN AMERICA (2004)

Cast

Plot

Bit of an oddity, this one. Ostensibly made for TV, Angels In America has a distinctly cinematic aesthetic that belies its ambitions to surpass its medium. Like Six Feet Under and to a lesser extent, '24', the series could easily play as a movie if not for its gargantuan running time (this one clocks in at 6 hours...). Set in Reaganite America, the central plot follows two gay men, both living in the closet, dealing with the burgeoning presence of AIDS in their day-to-day existence. The prevaling theme of religion and the protagonists operating in a godless universe is somewhat tiresome, just as the film is unbearingly politically correct at times. But director Mike Nichols imbues the film with such a striking visual style (inspired by the magic realists and seemingly by the psychadelic religious art from the American bible belt), it remains worth the effort.