Angels in America (DVD, 2004, 2-Disc Set)

The DVD's arrived promptly and unharmed. This 6-hour miniseries is an all-too-insightful fantasy based on the true story of Roy Cohn the conservative McCarthian yet gay and stricken with AIDS lawyer, his involvement with the Julius and Ethel Rosenberg espionage case, and the hypocritical, mendacious and double-standard Reaganite/neoconservative political circus. The Jewish and Mormon faiths play a significant role in this drama about the clash between so-called ideology-associated values and the facts on the ground of life, death, love and the human condition. Sex, religion and politics under the siege of AIDS, and no out but to have wild dreams. I mean WILD!

The all-star ensemble deliver an overwhelming dose of good acting, and many of the cast members perform multiple characters. The performance of The Kaddish (Jewish prayer for the dead) by Meryl Streep and BEn Shenkman is one of my all-time favorite moments in any thing I have seen on any screen. I was choking on laughs and tears at the same time. Except for the closing scene, which I found a bit too presentational, this is an amazing work of art on any level.

This is a must have for anyone who....... just anyone.... everyone.

Cast

Al Pacino as Roy Cohn
Meryl Streep as Hannah Pitt, Ethel Rosenberg, the Rabbi, and the Angel Australia
Patrick Wilson as Joe Pitt, the Antarctic Eskimo
Mary-Louise Parker as Harper Pitt
Emma Thompson as Nurse Emily, the Homeless Woman, and the Angel America
Justin Kirk as Prior Walter and the Leatherman in the Park
Jeffrey Wright as Mr. Lies, Belize, Homeless Man and the Angel Europa
Ben Shenkman as Louis Ironson, and the Angel Oceania
James Cromwell as Henry, Roy's Doctor
[edit]Awards and nominations

[edit]Golden Globe Awards
Best Miniseries or Made for TV Movie
Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie (Al Pacino)
Best Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie (Meryl Streep)
Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries, or Movie (Jeffrey Wright)
Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries, or Movie (Mary-Louise Parker)
[edit]Emmy Awards
Angels in America broke the record previously held by Roots for the most Emmys awarded to a program in a single year by winning 11 awards from 21 nominations (that record has since been broken by John Adams).
Won
Outstanding Miniseries
Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special (Mike Nichols)
Outstanding Lead Actor – Miniseries or a Movie (Al Pacino)
Outstanding Lead Actress – Miniseries or a Movie (Meryl Streep)
Outstanding Supporting Actor – Miniseries or a Movie (Jeffrey Wright)
Outstanding Actress - Miniseries or a Movie (Mary-Louise Parker)
Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
Outstanding Art Direction for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Part I & II)
Outstanding Makeup for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Non-Prosthetic)
Outstanding Single-Camera Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or a Movie
Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special (Tony Kushner)

"Angels In America," based on the Broadway play by Tony Kushner, tells several stories based in New York during the genesis of the AIDS epidemic.

Prior (Justin Kirk)has just been diagnosed with AIDS. His lover Louis (Ben Shenkman)leaves him. Louis begins a relationship with Joe (Patrick Wilson), whose Mormon upbringing keeps him in the closet, and slowly destroys his relationship with his wife Harper (Mary-Louise Parker), who is slightly offbalanced and popping valium like M&M's. Joe works with Roy Cohn (Al Pacino), who is also affected by AIDS, and is haunted by the ghost of Ethel Rosenberg (Meryl Streep)at every single turn as he's in a hospital bed, hoarding AZT,as well as being cared for reluctantly by Belize, the nurse (Jeffrey Wright). All the while Prior gets visions from an angel (Emma Thompson), who tells him he's a prophet, who must spread the word.

All of the performances are first rate (With Wright, Thompson and Streep playing other roles), but it's Wright's performance that practically steals the film. Mike Nichols does some great work with his actors, and it is great how all sides work together to bring this film to life.

Angels in America is written by feminist author, Tony Kushner. It was originally performed on Broadway in 1993. In NYC during the mid-'80s, Kushner's story articulates several interconnected lives of people affected by the US HIV-AIDS crisis, inspiring spiritual experiences, and Ronald Reagan's derelict of duty Administration.

Prior Walter (Justin Kirk) is a young man dying with AIDS. His situation is worsened when his lover, Jewish court clerk Louis Ironson (Ben Shenkman), abandons Walter. Walter has a visitation by an Angel (Emma Thompson), who repeatedly crashes through Walter's roof declaring he's a prophet.

Conservative power tripper Roy Cohn (Al Pacino) is also dying with AIDS. However, Cohn's in flat out denial of it. In a hospital, Cohn is repeatedly visited by the spirit of Ethel Rosenberg (Meryl Streep), a woman he sent to her death in an electric chair. Cohn's protégé is Mormon lawyer Joe Pitt (Patrick Wilson), who denies his own gayness. Pitt's wife Harper (Mary-Louise Parker) is addicted to Valium due to a severe sensitivity to her surrounding environment. Pitt leaves her to start up a relationship with a guy who works in his building, Louis. Jeffrey Wright maintains his stage role of Nurse Belize. Angels in America first aired in two parts on HBO during December of 2003.

20 Years after US President Reagan politicized the HIV virus into a gay-only disease, his utter ignorance is critically examined.

In my opinion, HBO can tend to try a little too hard on their films/miniseries. For example, after watching "You Don't Know Jack" recently, I was left feeling that its story and performances were extremely forced.

This short series, however, can come off as trying too hard (to be irreverant, or campy, or art-housey) but the ending result leaves you wanting more.

The acting is top-notch, with Meryl Streep, Al Pacino and Mary-Louise Parker leading the charge. Patrick Wilson (then pretty much an unknown, at least to me) and Emma Thompson turn in great performances as well, although it seems Emma Thompson was somewhat limited by her role (not her abilities).

Streep shines as usual, and Parker is brilliant as Wilson's pill-popping wife, but Al Pacino really stands out as the closeted Roy Cohn dealing with his demons. A nuanced performance is great, but this performance is powerful and overstated and really brings his character to life.

I never read the play but I would hope that the caliber of this series would make Kushner happy.

This is easily the finest film ever about the tragedy of AIDS in America. Watching it I was reminded that Berman originally made Fanny and Alexander as a miniseries for Swedish television, and I suspect that Mike Nichols was strongly influenced by Bergman when he translated this Pulitzer winning play to the small screen. There's the same haunting mixture of harsh reality, wild fantasy, and deeply human humor in both movies. The acting won Golden Globe Awards; had this been a theatrical release it would have won Oscars. Meryl Streep especially, but Al Pacino and Jeffrey Wright too give outstanding performances. Too good for television, it's wonderful to see this epic on DVD.