American-International Pictures during the 1960s usually had a good idea of what their drive-in audience would like to see, but they really missed the boat with "Angel, Angel, Down We Go" (a.k.a. "Cult of the Damned"), which was a box office disappointment. Studio head Samuel Z. Arkoff theorized that the failure of the movie was because the characters in the movie simply were not sympathetic, and the movie was extremely downbeat. That's certainly true, but the movie has additional problems. It's also pretty slow, with its thin story stretched out to the breaking point. Also, I am not sure what point the movie was trying to make, unless it was that life is a real downer. The movie is sometimes directed in an eye-catching manner (particularly the opening minutes), but it doesn't manage to hide that the story and characters are drab and uninteresting. It took a long time for this movie to get a home video release, though if you ask me, it could have stayed in obscurity.

The year 1969 was a special one. It was a turbulent time for sure in the world, where in the USA, a ton of people rebelled against the government and big business to create peace through sex, drugs and rock n' roll. Needless to say, Woodstock, one of the biggest music concerts took place in 1969. Not only that, film impacted tons of people of all ages back in the late 60s and early 70s in the form of change. Whether it was political, religious, societal, or cultural redesign; most people were embracing this change, and movies helped a bit in leading that bandwagon.One of the forgotten films from the late 60s was a film called 'Angel, Angel, Down We Go', however it is now called 'Cult of the Damned'. Probably a good move, since this film needs all the help it can get to keep people interested, despite Lou Rawls and Roddy McDowall starring in the movie. In fact, director Robert Thom and actress Jennifer Jones had more interesting lives than this film, but that's besides the point.This was the only film Thom ever directed, but he did go on to write a few of the 'Death Race' films along with a few other B-movies. Jennifer Jones was actually married to big time producer David O. Selznick (King Kong) until his death, where she attempted suicide and was found unconscious at the bottom of a cliff. Her daughter then committed suicide by jumping out of a 20-story window. It's a very sad story, but this film 'Cult of the Damned' was the first film Jones did after her attempted suicide, so I imagine she had quite a few things going through her head that she could relate to in the film.The film follows a young girl named Tara (Holly Near) who we see as a child at the start of the film. Her father Willy (Charles Aidman) a wealthy airplane businessman who has a sexual secret and her mother Astrid (Jennifer Jones), a free-spirited adult film star send their daughter off to a commune where she can be a free spirit. Time goes by and Tara ends up at a boarding school where she is taught ethics and manners, which her free-loving parents might not be happy about.In order to have their daughter be socially acceptable and free-thinking, they throw her a party where a rock-star named Bogart (Jordan Christopher) takes a liking to the young girl. Bogart comes with his bandmates as well, which include Lou Rawls and Roddy McDowall. Bogart and his bandmates have a sinister plan though. They aim to tear this family apart piece by piece, by manipulating everyone into despair. Bogart uses extreme sports and sex to lure his victims in, and when Tara is no longer paying attention to him, he sets his sights on Astrid. 'Cult of the Damned' has a good set up, although it's one we've seen before. I take it that Thom wanted to show us the temptation of the sex, drugs, and rock n' roll, and how a young girl had to struggle with that along with her insane home life and unorthodox relationship with her parents. It's hard to believe that anyone would follow or listen to this slime ball of character in Bogart, as he seems to be a budget Jim Morrison of The Doors. That and the fact that this movie runs at a snail's pace, ultimately bring down the whole experience. 'Cult of the Damned' is intended to shock you, but falls short.

The this is a disgraceful movie, embarrassing to watch and the only reason I and am sure many others did was to see a great star Jennifer Jones return to work. Puzzling as Jennifer Jones the great star of 'Song of Bernadette', 'Love Is A Many Splendored Thing', 'Madame Bovary', 'Tender Is The Night', was reduced to appearing in this film. Why Jennifer Why? Anyone who follows Jennifer Jones' career notes that David Selznick micro managed Jennifer's career making some wise choices Song of Bernadatte and then some poor one's turning down 'Laura'. Mr.Selznick regarded Jennifer Jones as a star of the stature of Garbo. To see this fine talented actress in a mess like this is explainable only by the fact perhaps in the editing some un wise choices were made. and I am sure the only reason some have seen it is to see Ms. Jones who was a superb actress appear in a dreadful film. I am not sure but I believe this film was shot at the old Selznick studio in Culver City which makes the embarrassment all the more to the point.Jennifer Jones would go on to make one more movie 'Towering Inferno' with Steve McQueen, and Paul Newman and William Holden, and where Jennifer Jones got some very good notices and a Golden Globe Nomination, and then retired.David Barra

I recommend that this is watched on a double-bill with Wild in the Streets, also written by Robert Thom. Both films contain similarities - a Messiah-like pop star with pretensions for a new social order, overbearing parents, LSD sequences, pop music, alternative forms of sexuality, camp and "established" actresses freaking out.This film is like being in a long trance - there's so much imagery and symbolism that you'll need to watch it three or four times before it starts to make sense.It's a little nihilistic for my liking, but well worth watching - Jennifer Jones gets to call her maid a sadistic lesbian, her husband appears in the first scene naked in the shower with his young male friend, while the daughter's voice-over says "My first memory is that my parents were perfect." There's all sorts of weird stuff like the cast taking a walk along Santa Monica Beach and Jennifer Jones buying candyfloss with her jewellery and then discarding it.The songs are reasonably good too, especially The Fat Song, Bloody Mama (also another Robert Thom film) and Angel, Angel Down We Go. This is one freaked out movie. I love it!