Virgil Bliss (2001)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Joe Maggio

Writer:

Joe Maggio (writer)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Romance

Plot:

Virgil Bliss is a man obsessed with living a normal life, finding a good job, marrying a decent woman...

Plot Keywords:

Halfway House | Thief | Janitor | Junkie | Prison

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Clint Jordan	...	Virgil Bliss
Kirsten Russell	...	Ruby
Anthony Gorman	...	Manny
Greg Amici	...	Gillette
Marc Romeo	...	Devo
Anthony Hayden	...	Lester
Tom Brangle	...	Captain
Whitney Hamilton	...	Virgil's Boss
Denny Bess	...	Lombardo
Alejandra Leon	...	Prostitute #2
Richard Bierman	...	Check-Out Guard
Patrick Sullivan	...	Drug Dealer
John Hagemann	...	Big Guard
Patrick Walsh	...	Little Guard
Mike Bubb	...	Prisoner

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Concrete Films

Soundtrack:

Cold July

flawless character definition

As a fan of gritty, street-life character studies I looked forward to watching this film for quite a while before it hit the Sundance Channel. As I watched the story unfold it became harder and harder to distinguish between the actors and the roles they were portraying. It's obvious that bad things are going to happen but nothing prepared me for what eventually happened in the end. I was left wondering for days afterwards what happened to these people after the cameras stopped rolling. That doesn't happen often in films for me these days.

While it's sad to say that some people can never change it's also obvious after watching Virgil try to change his life for the better that some people have just not got a chance in this world. Sometimes wanting to be good is not always enough.

Throw in an alcoholic, dimebag hooker as a love interest along with other destitute sociopaths such as pimps, goombahs, ex-cons and the like and it's just sometimes too much to bear. Watching Virgil try to heal Ruby's addictive personality with his unconditional love and affection is just downright painful stuff. The only time he can break down her defenses is when she's so wasted that she's an imminent threat to Virgil's new-gained freedom and sobriety. It explained a lot for me why people in bad situations make things worse with drug and alcohol abuse. Sometimes it's the only way to feel human again.

Anyway, there's a lot going on in this film besides Virgil's love interests. A lot of forces are gnawing at him every day, coaxing him to fail. it's really impossible to guess what which one will do him in. Everyone in this film deserves fame and respect for their treatment of their character roles. Great stuff, just make sure you're not feeling lonely before you watch this movies as it's probably going to make you feel a lot worse.