The TV movie Angry Angel airs November 27th, 9pm on Freeform.
By Chris Flanagan
I’m proud of Freeform for stepping up and taking a shot at the holiday movie trope. They don’t really get anything for trying, but as a viewer, it’s nice to see the effort. Angry Angel is a perfect example in this department. If Freeform is not careful they could resemble the millennial version of The Hallmark Channel in several years (and in some ways they already are).
Angry Angel centers around Allison Pyke, an angel that is not yet ready for Heaven and lives on Earth performing miracles for enough points in order to go up someday. Pyke is constantly driven by an Angel App that she allows to dictate her actions, thus leaving meaningful relationships by the wayside and being motivated by a selfish desire just to get into Heaven and not to help others. Pyke also has an angel mentor on Earth played by Jason Biggs who is, in fact, playing himself in the movie. Biggs, alongside a rival angel played by former Vine star Andrew Bachelor (aka King Bach), who has been to Heaven and got kicked out for stealing Gandhi’s Lamborghini, attempt to help Pyke understand the importance of not accomplishing miracles solely to get into Heaven but to actually make people’s lives better.
Trust me when I tell you that in those four sentences I have completely summed up the entire plot of Angry Angel leaving just enough for you to fill in on your own. But what stands out with this TV movie is that it is still a lot of fun to watch. The actors do a good job in their roles. The story is simple enough, yet still fairly entertaining and I actually found parts quite funny. There were several moments where I guiltily laughed out loud checking around to see if anyone noticed, especially pertaining to Jason Biggs having been a 96-year-old Russian doctor in his previous life. Ultimately, what you have is Freeform’s tiptoe into a realm that has been mastered by The Hallmark Channel, albeit with a different target audience in mind.
Angry Angel can serve as a fun, light-hearted watch that will not require you to sit down and pay attention, or it can just be background noise as you decorate for Christmas. Either way, it was entertaining enough to warrant a watch yet will not be for everyone. In many cases, people might not like its predictable and offbeat storyline, however at times I found its approach refreshing enough to see all the way through. Fair warning; don’t go into it expecting much and you’ll more than likely be surprised with your enjoyment of Angry Angel.
I give Angry Angel a B-.
TV and City 