Plot: What’s it about?
In Angels, the realm of heaven is as good as ever, but a slow death rate has caused a shortage in new arrivals. The world is filled with people on the brink of death, but for some reason or another, they manage to survive. In order to get things back on track, God has sent down angels to push those people over the edge, which ensures the ebb and flow of heaven remain intact and that’s important. The latest assignment is two angels charged with helping a psychotic cowboy named Tex, who is trying to murder Leon DeWilde, an artist. Leon is obsessed with death and has an immense fear of it, so it won’t be an easy task. Tex manages to off Leon’s mime and do some damage to his girlfriend, but Leon himself escapes. But when a showdown looms and even God is on hand to watch, can Leon manage to stay alive? In Getting Into Heaven, a gorgeous woman named Heaven (Uschi Digart) dreams of becoming a real life movie star. She gets some inspiration from being naked with her friend Lyn and puts a plan into motion, one that will either make them famous, or make them infamous. Heaven and Lyn use their hot bodies to lure producer Mr. Salacity into a kidnap trap, then auditioning for him until he agrees to let them become stars. But when he turns out to be a sex maniac, will the girls be forced to give up their dreams?
This divine double feature isn’t suited for devout bible-thumpers, but for fans of exploitation, its a fun release. If you’re offended by naked angels, a black God, or assassins serving a divine cause, then Angels is a lock to upset you. I was kind of surprised that Getting Into Heaven isn’t really a movie in the same mold, but it has Uschi Digart, so that’s enough for me. I would have liked another religious themed picture instead, but in the world of exploitation, perhaps those are harder to come by, so I can forgive the substitution. And since Digart is so hot, its like having another angel involved, so I would assume viewers should be pleased. Angels was presented by Harry Novak, which means ample beautiful women who love to drop their clothes. This means tons of naked angels and in this case, the chicks are downright lethal. If you though Charlie’s Angels could kick some ass, wait until you see this assortment of lovelies. A strange blend of sex, violence, and bad jokes, Angels is a welcome change of pace, to be sure. On the other side, we have Getting Into Heaven and aside from the female flesh, there’s little to rave about. Digart is as sexy as always and so is her costar Jennie Lynn, but the story is weak and it fails to generate much interest. Even so, Angels alone is reason enough to nab this release, so check it out.
Video: How does it look?
Angels is presented in 1.85:1 non-anamorphic widescreen, while Getting Into Heaven is presented in full frame. Angels looks good and the widescreen edition is very nice, but the low rent origins lessen the experience at times. A few scenes have some shake, which is a real distraction and the print is on the worn side. I do think the print looks better than expected, but the shaking is bad all around. The print on Getting Into Heaven is along the same lines, but cleaner on the whole and of course, no shaking is seen. The color in both is bright and natural, while contrast is accurate and well balanced also. Given that these are two low, low budget movies, I think these transfers are more than solid in all respects.
Audio: How does it sound?
This release uses the original mono tracks and while these movies don’t offer room shaking mixes, the tracks handle the films’ audio needs very well. This type of material doesn’t call for much in terms of dynamic sound, so the mono format is more than adequate in all respects. The dialogue is crisp, with no harshness or separation issues in the least. The sound effects have no problems either, as they come across in distinct and clear fashion. I found very little distortion present and the usual mono hiss is thankfully absent. You can tell these were low budget flicks of course, but these soundtracks are still more than acceptable.
Supplements: What are the extras?
The sole extra specific to these movies is a theatrical trailer for Angels, but some related supplements have also been included. You’ll find two rare Uschi Digart short films (Bedtime Surprise & Girl Snatcher), a bonus short film titled Door to Heaven, Harry Novak exploitation artwork & still photos, plus a slew of bonus trailers.
