Angel 2

Jiri Strach's 2016 film continues from Andel Pane of 2005. The endless argument between the angel Petronel and the devil Urias this time sends an apple from the tree of knowledge rolling down to earth. The two descend on a small Czech town during Advent to find it. The structure of the first film is preserved: heaven as a bureaucratic institution, a careless angel, a devil who is in fact less wicked. The humour comes from the same vein and the sequel repeats it; it adds nothing new but breaks no expectation either. Films shown on television at Christmas form a tradition of their own in Czechia, and this series is the best-known recent example of it. Ivan Trojan and Jiri Dvorak return to their roles. Who it's for: family audiences who saw the first film. Who it's not for: viewers new to the series; the film assumes the relationship between its characters from the start.