Not Angels But Angels (Documentary)
Picture: C+
Sound: C+ Extras: D Film: B-
Issued the same year as his documentary Body Without
Soul (1994, reviewed elsewhere on this site), Not Angels But Angels
is Wiktor Grodecki’s even more graphic depiction of how young underage boys are
being exploited in Prague, so much so that certain shots of child pornography
had to be digitally blocked up for this release. Needless to say, that totally runs the risk of the film
celebrating what it is condemning, but the interviews with the victims still
living a life they did not choose offsets that problem. The pictures are further evidence they are
not lying, so it can also be seen as a very necessary evil.
Certainly, some viewers are watching the film for the
wrong reasons, but as long as it remains a problem people let happen over and
over again, such films cannot be written off so easily. That one of the boys is from the United
States and stays in Prague to be victimized is a great way of saying this
happens everywhere, and with so many children living in poverty in the U.S.,
definitely here. When AIDS comes up
towards the end of the 80 minutes running time, I just knew those “certain
viewers” viewing this for the wrong reasons could have cared less, but it is in
reality is a new crisis being caused in part by the crisis that is the subject
of the film at hand. Some of the
“pimps” are also interviewed, but none arrested.
The full frame 1.33 X 1 image is in color and shows its
age a bit, but is good for a DVD issued in 2000. The analog video master image still has good color, shot well by
cinematographer Vladimir Holomek. The
Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo has very limited surrounds and was a Dolby A-type
theatrical sound release. Surrounds may
have been a diminished by the soundtrack being a few generations down, so this
should not be taken as representative of how the film first sounded. Classical music is used often again, which
some could say is as if it were enhancing the exploitation and nudity of the
boys as “art” or the like. If anything,
it brings home how this sickness is being covered up, but this is a worth point
of controversial note. The only extras
are two trailers for other Water Bearer titles before the film as if this were
on a linear VHS tape. Not Angels But
Angels is even graphic and disturbing for the visual censorship, but is not
heavy-handed and an important record of an unspeakable exploitation that needs
to be dealt with far better than it is years after this release.
- Nicholas Sheffo
