''Angel, Angel, Down We Go'', also known as ''Cult of the Damned'', is a 1969 American film directed by playwright and screenwriter Robert Thom, his sole directorial credit. Thom based his screenplay on an unproduced stage play of the same title that he had written several years earlier as a vehicle for his wife, actress

Janice Rule Mary Janice Rule (August 15, 1931 – October 17, 2003) was an American actress and psychotherapist, earning her PhD while still acting, then acting occasionally while working in her new profession. Early life Rule was born in Norwood, Ohio, to ...

. The film was produced by

Sam Katzman Sam Katzman (July 7, 1901 – August 4, 1973) was an American film producer and director. Katzman produced low-budget genre films, including serials, which had disproportionately high returns for the studios and his financial backers. E ...

's Four Leaf Productions and distributed by

American International Pictures American International Pictures (AIP) is an American motion picture production label of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In its original operating period, AIP was an independent film production and distribution company known for producing and releasing fi ...

Plot

The overweight, emotionally troubled daughter of an affluent but brittle Hollywood couple becomes involved with a charismatic rock singer and his friends. The singer proceeds to seduce and manipulate her entire family.

Cast

Jennifer Jones Jennifer Jones (born Phylis Lee Isley; March 2, 1919 – December 17, 2009), also known as Jennifer Jones Simon, was an American actress and mental health advocate. Over the course of her career that spanned over five decades, she was nominated ...

as Astrid Steele *

Jordan Christopher Jordan Christopher (October 23, 1940 – January 21, 1996) was an American actor and singer. He was the lead singer of The Wild Ones, who recorded the original version of the rock classic " Wild Thing" after Christopher had left the band. Earl ...

as Bogart Peter Stuyvesant *

Holly Near Holly Near (born June 6, 1949) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, teacher, and activist. Early years Holly Near was born in Ukiah, California, United States, and was raised on a ranch in Potter Valley, California. She was eight years ...

as Tara Steele * Lou Rawls as Joe *

Charles Aidman Charles Leonard Aidman (January 21, 1925 – November 7, 1993) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. Early life Aidman was born in Frankfort, Indiana, the son of George E. and Etta (Kwitny) Aidman. Aidman graduated from Frank ...

as Willy Steele * Davey Davison as Anna Livia *

Roddy McDowall Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...

as Santoro

Production

In August 1960, Thom, best known for writing the film ''

Compulsion Compulsion may refer to: * Compulsive behavior, a psychological condition in which a person does a behavior compulsively, having an overwhelming feeling that they must do so. * Obsessive–compulsive disorder, a mental disorder characterized by i ...

'', announced he would direct a play titled ''Angel Angel Down We Go'' starring his wife,

. It would be presented by

Leland Hayward Leland Hayward (September 13, 1902 – March 18, 1971) was a Hollywood and Broadway agent and theatrical producer. He produced the original Broadway stage productions of Rodgers and Hammerstein's '' South Pacific'' and ''The Sound of Music''. ...

in December and was about a group of

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

students in Greenwich Village. By November, Hayward halted production because he had been unable to find a director and a theater. In August 1961, the play was acquired by Theatrical Interests Plan. In September 1962,

Shirley Knight Shirley Knight Hopkins (July 5, 1936 – April 22, 2020) was an American actress who appeared in more than 50 feature films, television films, television series, and Broadway and Off-Broadway productions in her career, playing leading and charac ...

was announced as the star. The Broadway production did not occur but Thom transformed his play into a film script. Film rights were bought by Sam Katzman, who procured financing from AIP.

signed in December 1968 and filming began on February 18, 1969. The part of the daughter was played by

, who had not planned to be a film actress but was invited to audition after appearing at an awards event. "I got the part because I was beautiful and because I was fat," recalled Near in her memoir, adding that Thom had asked her to gain weight for the role. Near said that Jones "was the grand dame that she deserved to be. I watched her struggle with her part, with her role, with her fear. I felt like an ugly duckling next to an aging swan."Near p 44 Near felt that Thom "didn't have much compassion for my character ... I struggled to give her dignity where there was none ... I always wondered why Robert wanted to make this film."

Songs

The songs in the film, "Angel Angel Down We Go", "The Fat Song", "Hey Hey Hey and a Hi Ho", "Lady Lady", "Mother Lover" and "Revelation," were written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil and were sung by

Reception

The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' called the film "a pretentious mess" although "it can never be said to bore." ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' described the film as "an unmitigated financial disaster." AIP rereleased the film as ''Cult of the Damned'' in 1970. It was issued on a double bill with ''

The Vampire Lovers ''The Vampire Lovers'' is a 1970 British Gothic horror film directed by Roy Ward Baker and starring Ingrid Pitt, Peter Cushing, George Cole, Kate O'Mara, Madeline Smith, Dawn Addams and Jon Finch. It was produced by Hammer Film Productions. ...

''. The ''Los Angeles Times'' called it "a terrible piece of trash."

In popular culture

The fifth track on

Morrissey Steven Patrick Morrissey (; born 22 May 1959), known professionally as Morrissey, is an English singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 1987. Since then ...

's 1988 debut solo album ''

Viva Hate ''Viva Hate'' is the debut solo studio album by English singer Morrissey. It was released on 14 March 1988 by HMV, six months after the final studio album by the Smiths, '' Strangeways, Here We Come'' (1987). Vini Reilly, the leader of the E ...

'' is titled "Angel, Angel Down We Go Together."

References

Notes

External links

* *
Trailer
at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

''Angel, Angel Down We Go''
at Jennifer Jones Tribute Site {{Sam Katzman 1969 films 1969 drama films American drama films 1960s English-language films 1960s American films