Angels in America

For some this is already outdated within but a few years of its creation, but for me, who let one of the most famous original HBO projects lie idle for fifteen shameful years, it's still relevant, still alive, still addressing topics that will never age. And it doesn't matter who is in power, who has to be ashamed to admit their sexual orientation, or who has to hear any fatal diagnosis from a doctor. Some people will always be cold and unapproachable, while others will be supportive, believing, and full of hope. At least, I hope so. The series itself is, in my eyes, an incomparable illumination with a torch carried by my forever beloved Al Pacino, the enchanting Mary-Louise Parker, and the meteoric and passionately burning Justin Kirk. I feel sad for all the lost souls, for all the forgotten angels, for all the viewers who condemn Mike Nichols' (and especially Tony Kushner's) opus as boring or shameful, and last but not least, I am sad that even though Angels in America belongs to this century in terms of its release year, I have an inexplicable fear that such spectacles are no longer made today. Race, taste, and history finally overcome. And you ain't there. (31.08.2018)

The majority of books, films, and television shows are created with the intention to entertain and do not have any higher goals. However, occasionally a work appears that clearly has higher ambitions and aims to capture the atmosphere and significant movements in a certain country, era, or social class. Angels in America not only has such ambitions but successfully manages to fulfill them. Through its characters, it transports us back to the United States in the mid-1980s, when the conservative Reagan revolution was at its peak and the AIDS epidemic was fully erupting, primarily affecting members of the homosexual minority. This minority traditionally concentrated in large liberal cities in the eastern region. The series portrays the lives of several gay individuals who cope with either their own illness or the illness of their friends and intimate partners. They experience frustration from the radicalized social atmosphere and concerns about the future. Well-written, directed, and performed, Angels rightfully earned several significant professional awards. The series also includes a mysterious storyline; however, it is secondary and certainly does not mean that this series can be classified in the same category as Lynch's works or entertaining fantasy series. Angels is unique in that the series, justifiably, did not have the kind of commercial success that would force the creative team to squeeze out further sequels. Angels is not for everyone, but those who appreciate quality and provocativeness will truly enjoy this story of angels coming to our world, which constantly oscillates between subtle irony and the tragedy of gradual decay and dying. Overall impression: 95%. (09.01.2013)

Angels in America ist eine Serienadaption des berühmten Bühnenstücks von 1993. Tony Kushners Stück wurde mit dem Pulitzer-Preis ausgezeichnet (ein Preis, der für neue, für die amerikanische Kultur bedeutsame Kunstwerke vergeben wird, die mittlerweile über die literarischen Gattungen hinausgehen, eine Tradition, die seit 1917 besteht). Das erklärt eine Menge. Das Hauptdarsteller-Trio Al Pacino, Meryl Streep und Emma Thompson ist großartig und geht über ihr typisches Casting hinaus. Und auch die jungen Leute haben bewiesen, dass sie gut ausgewählt wurden. Auch ihre anderen Arbeiten haben Früchte getragen, zum Beispiel auf Showtime. Das Thema ist wirklich dicht, denn es verbindet AIDS, das in der Gay-Community Alarm schlägt, mit der Frage nach der religiösen Identität der Mormonen außerhalb ihres Heimatstaates Utah. Es lohnt sich wirklich, die moderne US-Geschichte zu kennen, denn sonst werden Sie absolut nicht verstehen, worum es geht. Andererseits ist es so verrückt, dass man sich bei nichts mehr sicher sein kann. Aber es gibt einen großen Mangel: Es gibt praktisch keinen Hinweis darauf, dass das Ganze Mitte der 1980er Jahre spielt, und erst im abschließenden Epilog wird die Zeit auf 1990, fünf Jahre später, festgelegt, was einfach inkonsequent ist. Der Diskurs über AIDS hat sich in jedem Jahrzehnt anders entwickelt, und wir müssen uns der zeitlichen Verschiebung bewusst sein. (06.03.2020)