Angel Has Fallen Review: 6 Ups & 4 Downs

3. The Surprisingly Progressive Politics

London Has Fallen had no qualms about wearing its rather grotesque politics on its sleeve, as best indicated by the cringe-worthy sequence where Banning tells a terrorist to "go back to F**kheadistan."

Thankfully Angel not only jettisons the casual racism of the previous film but actually takes a decidedly more progressive approach to politics.

For starters, criticism of government-sponsored militias is apparent throughout, while numerous wink-wink references are made to the fishy recent real-life relations between the U.S. and Russia.

At one point, Tim Blake Nelson's character even literally namedrops the election tampering scandal. But it goes even further than that.

On a broader level the film also has something to say about masculinity, challenging the flag-waving hoo-rah testosterone-fueled nature of the previous two films by conceding that Banning, clearly riddled with PTSD and physical problems from his years in service, needs to accept medication and mental health help.

For a target audience that perhaps thumbs its nose up at such concepts, it's a refreshingly informed message to leave the audience with, rather than the typical eyebrow-raising jingoism.