Okay, I’ll have to admit, some people didn’t like Charlie’s Angels (2000). It felt like a bunch of music videos put together to make up a movie. Ah, but how sweet a movie it is for those of us who want flash, action, and popcorn excitement.
For the first time since I started writing my Women Who Wow Wednesday series, I’m not going to look at one kick-ass chick. Not two. But three! That’s right. I couldn’t decide on who to choose, so I decided to do ‘em all. Hold on to your butts. It’s gonna be a wild ride.
Natalie Cook—Played by Cameron Diaz, she’s the platinum blonde of the bunch. Highly skilled in martial arts, able to give a punch and take one without effort. She’s an expert driver and pilot. If it has wheels, she can drive it. If it has wings, well, you know the rest. There’s not a vain bone in her body. As a nerd in high school, she once dressed like Princess Leia (braces, glasses, and the bun). Although some folks might consider her naïve, in reality she graduated MIT with a Ph.D., and worked as a research scientist for the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
Natalie’s known for her fantastic optimism. Life is better when justice prevails and evil gets it up-and-comings. She has supermodel presence, but she’s unaware of it. She’s the type of girl who will answer the door to the UPS guy in her underwear. Yeah, in her Spider-Man underwear.
Alex Munday—Played by Lucy Liu, she’s exotic, an expert in linguistics, and possesses business acumen beyond genius. Much like Natalie, she’s proficient in kung-fu. Her major love is fencing and horseback riding. She may seem small, but her background is massive. Once a teenage gymnast going for the gold in the Olympics, she also proves herself a large asset for NASA as an on-call government engineer. And let’s not forget her stint dancing with the Stuttgart Ballet. The benefits of a classical education.
Alex is the most versatile of the angels. She can play many roles, and slip in and out of characters without hesitating. She also has a love for cooking, regardless if the kitchen hates her.
Dylan Sanders—Played by Drew Barrymore, she’s the hostile one with the curled hair and short fuse. She managed to squeeze some time away from the police academy after beating the crap out of her training officer. Generally rebellious, always an anti-everything. She never looks before she jumps. Her education? Lackluster.
But Dylan has something going for her: she finds the good in everyone. She’s also the most affectionate of the three. Even though she can clear out a room of bad guys with her hands tied behind her back, her real talent lies in her power to be different. A tongue-bearing rocker at heart. She is a force of reckoning.
These are the angels. Unique in every way. Divided, they pose a threat. Together, they can annihilate.
Long live the angels.
Ever see Charlie’s Angels? What did you think of the awesome trio?
Looking to God 
It was one of my favorite movies when I was younger (I was in middle school at the time). I still find myself wishing they would make a 3rd!
Actually, I really like this movie.
Charlie’s Angels is a blunt honest movie. Sex sells, you bet! Charlie’s Angels does not even want to hide it. It is easier for action movies to avoid lost in translation. Oh yeah! Let’s do it!
They tried so hard to make it sell, and I am buying it.
Of course, I’m of an age where I grew up with the original Angels TV show, and that was a pretty formative experience in my life as a young man, so the comparisons between those angels and the angels in the movies are hard at times to set aside. Nonetheless, as simple enjoyable pieces of fluff, I thought the two movies delivered exactly what one could and should expect. Pretty girls in a pretty high octane adventure. Asking any more of something like this is just too much.
I did find it interesting, however to note that the Black Widows’s chair fight scene in the Avengers movie definitely echoed Drew Barrymore’s scene in Angels.
I thought the exact same thing about the Black Widow scene, Michael. I didn’t know others may have felt the same way. Had she only moonwalked out of there, it would have been the perfect homage to the angels.
i did see both charlie’s angels movies and i while the movies were fairly good, i am a purist. i don’t think anything can compare to the originals. I was brought up on the original, and though most boys/guys went for the blondes (farrah/Cheryl), i always held a candle for Kate Jackson. She was tough and smart and bookishly beautiful.
Thanks for this fun post, Jack. Go girl power, ha! I barely see any movies but would like to make more time for watching. Netflix to the rescue! After reading this I want to check out Charlie’s Angels, too!
Having seen both films, I can say that I loved the first one for their use of The Creepy Thin Man as a very effective Dragon to the eventual big bad toward the end. The second film was not as serious as the first one but it more than made up for it by not taking itself too seriously. The first one worked for me because it both respected and celebrated the source material it came from, whereas the second one just celebrated the source material.
That said, let’s talk about the failed attempt to bring back the TV show. Here is the essential reason why it failed: They waited too long between the last film and the TV show. If they had struck while the iron was hot, it might have had a chance.
I couldn’t agree with you more. Crispin Glover was amazing in the part. I still remember him from Back to the Future. Well, who can forget “McFly? Hello? McFly?” Knock, knock, knock. He makes an effective character actor. Wish I’d seen him more often in films, but that’s the way the game goes.
As for the series, I never saw it. I guess it shows how effective Hollywood marketing was with that gig. Had the producers jumped at the chance for a Charlie’s Angels remake soon after 2000, we’d have an instant classic. But alas, again, that’s the way the game goes.
Besides, the only reason why both films worked is because McG, the guy who directed both films, got it from the start. By the time they got around to it, he was already involved with Chuck.
Pretty much. I remember discovering the original series in syndication as a young lad (I’m 40 now.) Heh… There’s a reason why Farrah Fawcett posters sold so well for so long, after all.
I always liked Alex Munday best in the series. She seemed to be the smartest and classiest. Fun stuff, Jack!
You’re right about that, Elise. Those shots throughout the beginning of the movie is where we’re introduced to the angels; we have a pretty good mini-biography on our hands to decipher. Alex, especially, went to the top schools and excelled in virtually everything. To me, that’s a woman who wows!
I think this movie had a lasting impact not because of the gorgeous girls (although that was part of it) but we’d never seen powerful female characters act in the ways the Angels did in western cinema before. They really were Women who wowed us, and for once the men were the supporting cast.
I like Charlie Angels. Great pic!!!! I must say I think I’m a lot like Dylan. I won’t hesitate to give you a verbal beating and knock some sense into you. LOL!!!! Yeah the movie was a tad bit cartoonish at times but it was fun and vibrant. It was that type of movie. Plus the women kicked ass. What’s not to like! Thanks Jack!!!!!
I did see this..but its been so long that I don’t really remember much. Back then, these girls were the rising stars in Hollywood. I wasn’t particularly impressed was the memory I have of the movie in whole but then, I remember the angels being quite kick ass 🙂
Thanks for liking a recent post of mine Jack! I’m glad we’ve connected and am looking forward to exploring your blog, especially this series! Looks right up my alley. Dylan is my favourite Angel. That scene where she takes care of the bad guys with her hands tied behind her back and then moonwalks outta there? Classic!
Agreed, Dylan is a wonderful character. Solid and quick to punch. I don’t think anything fazes her. The drive-through scene is the scene I remember the most, “I’ll have three burgers, three French fries and three cherry pies. What do you guys want?” My type of hero!
I wanted to be Kate Jackson on the original series. The movie–probably Cameron Diaz. But then again, who doesn’t want to be Cameron Diaz?
That was so fun. I don’t think I’ve watched it all the way through but I love those feisty chicks. How smart they are too.
I get a kick out of your Wednesday posts. 🙂 Just wanted you to know. lol
Thanks, Sandi! It certainly is one of the most entertaining parts of my week. I always wonder what people think. I’m glad I’m able to connect with a heap of folks in a fun way!
I thought the first one was entertaining, but I don’t remember what I thought about the second one. Or if I ever saw it. I wonder how this movie compares to the original series.