Angels Fallen: Warriors of Peace

"Angels Fallen: Warriors of Peace" attempts to reimagine the supernatural warfare theme introduced in the 2010 film "Legion," but falls short in several key areas. Both movies center around celestial beings fighting to prevent the apocalypse, with a mix of action, horror, and biblical elements. However, "Legion" delivers a more cohesive narrative, driven by a stronger script and better-developed characters.

In "Angels Fallen: Warriors of Peace," the plot feels derivative and lacks the tension that made "Legion" memorable. The characters in "Legion," particularly Michael and Gabriel, are more compelling, with their moral dilemmas adding depth to the story. In contrast, the characters in "Angels Fallen" are somewhat flat, relying heavily on action sequences to carry the film rather than meaningful character development.

While "Angels Fallen" boasts impressive special effects and ambitious fight scenes, they often overshadow the story rather than enhance it. The film's pacing is also uneven, with moments of intense action followed by lulls that disrupt the flow. In comparison, "Legion" maintains a consistent pace, blending action and suspense more effectively.

The dialogue in "Angels Fallen" sometimes feels forced and lacks the gravitas needed for a film of this genre. "Legion," on the other hand, benefits from sharper writing that balances the supernatural elements with human drama, making it a more engaging and emotionally resonant experience.

Ultimately, while "Angels Fallen: Warriors of Peace" may appeal to fans of supernatural action films, it doesn't quite live up to the standard set by "Legion." If you're looking for a more compelling story with stronger characters and a better execution of similar themes, "Legion" is the superior choice.

Good?

Well, the basic idea isn't that bad. However, the execution is abominable. Script is probably OK, but the pace is terribly slow. The beginning is rhapsodic and not really connecting the pieces and everything (of course) leads to the big, umm, monster fight at the end. Acting is atrocious but the daemons should have made Ray Harryhausen (famous old stop-motion animator from way, way, waaay back) proud.

I do, however, like the tuned down music. I often find that the music score is overpowering.

The scenery is great, though. The old USSR tourist agency Intourist would have appointed a medal for the footage. Georgia is a beautiful country to visit. Except in these times since Russia occupies two major parts of the country.

But, puhlease, director/scriptwriter et al! Don't do this again! 'K?

I really don't have much to say, only that they got addicted playing with Efx as they are with Meth! As for Cuba? SMH!!! Went from Radio, Medal of Honor to this? Diddy do it? His performance on Boyz n the Hood wasn't that up to par, but was better than this... This!!! It damaged me, my eyes, ears, soul! The monsters look like paper mache or claymation.. I wouldn't have brought it out! Diddy Free Cuba! I'd rather watch Great Space Coaster or Reading Rainbow. Whoever directed this is not a good master at his craft! Only thought in yo mind, O" I got Cuba in it, he's gonna make me money. Well you got lucky but tricked the world, next movie won't be believable. Please make a better movie next time.

The plot's been done a million times before so you know what you're getting here, but the execution of it is so bad it's hard to watch. To start with, they acting is bad, I mean really bad. The thing about acting is you have to make the viewers think that you're feeling what you're saying instead of sounding like you're reading from a script in a monotone. Stone-faced line delivery kills the mood. Denise Richards tries but I was so distracted feeling sorry for her from what must have been a hive of bees stinging her lips before she got to the set. "MEDIC, we need Benadryl here STAT!!!" Next the writing: I couldn't tell if they were trying to sneak in a religious movie under the guise of a sci-fi action film or if the script writer had ADHD and couldn't stay on point. Third: The editing is just frustrating. There's no flow here. The movie goes from long shots to quick (and I mean real quick) cuts so many times that it's distracting; add to that when they go to hand held shaky cam mode it can bring on nausea. There's no pacing here. I've never seen a movie so bad at piecing together scenes that don't go together so often. There's too many times in this movie where you ask yourself "Ok, who is this and what's going on here?" Fourth: Fire the fight scene choreographer. I mean they must have told Cuba Gooding 'Ok, just swing the blade in this direction and we'll add the demons in post edit". Denise Richards cuts the head off of a creature that just stands there taking it, and the mano a mano fights are almost in slow motion but you realize it's real time. This movie fails on so many levels that it makes Plan 9 look like a masterpiece. Some of these reviews were obviously written by people who either made the movie or are friends or relatives trying to keep the numbers up, because there's no way this rates above a 3. The only positive in the film is the CGI was done well. At least someone did their job right.

Fallen Angels: Warriors of Peace has the same vibe and spirit of those Universal direct-to-video films. It has more going on under the hood with its biblical references and at the very least, it isn't trying to be one of those terrible Christian propaganda films that no one watches and are only successful because of the grift from that sect of customers and creatives. This is just a middling action film with some decent action and a few recognizable faces that could be doing better, but have found themselves here like some chosen warriors to be the next batch of direct-to-video stars. It's a shame, because some of these actors have been in better stuff, but that's just how things go from time to time. If you like the vibe of those sy-fy channel original movies or are a specialist in direct-to-video schlock, then give it a watch. Otherwise, you can just go watch that 90s Arnold Schwarzenegger film End of Days or the Keanu Reeves-starred Constantine. This is easily a film I would watch once on a lark and then never again.