Truly a work of art. Film Credits Sweet Virginia (2017) Rated R for violence, some strong sexuality, language, and drug use. Please click the link below to receive your verification email. Moving the setting further north to Alaska gives the film a different edge, although it does render the title less meaningful. By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie. The killer, a steely-eyed psychopath named Elwood (Christopher Abbott) I might be blinded by my love for Christopher Abbott and Jon Bernthal, but I thought Sweet Virginia was a great thriller. "I'll have the early bird special." Despite his reputation as a man of action, A former rodeo champ befriends a young man with a propensity for violence. They are all somehow broken inside. This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Drama. He starts his morning at the motel by reading about the shootings in the paper and then responding to a disturbance in room 128. This can be interesting with the right story and good execution but that is what's missing here. As for Elwood (okay Ill stop), we learn early on that he was hired by another local wife, Lila, who hated her husband and wanted him dead so she could collect his money WITH WHICH, and heres the rub, she was going to pay Elwood, and then do other things. loneliness and emptiness of a location that might be difficult to find on all Direction 7/10 (Jamie Dagg made a good dark Neo-Noir/Neo Western thriller) A "multi-function" face cream from the French brand Clarins that addresses skin concerns such as radiance, firmness and plumpness. Its an aesthetic that practically demands to be seen on the big screen, as few digital home theaters can handle the nuances of such darkness, nor the level of communion between audience and character that the movie demands. generally well made except for the 0 entertainment value. A former rodeo champ befriends a young man with a propensity for violence. Imogen Poots is solid but underused. I only new a couple. Sam leaves Maggie's basketball game to spend the night with Bernadette. A former rodeo star, with a small time life, unknowingly starts a rapport with a young man who is responsible for the violence that has suddenly gripped his small town. This movie is stocked with great actors and great plot ideas that just never come together. Elwood attempts to get in his car to flee, but Sam shoots and kills him. Just writing this after watching. One of those movies where the trailer looks so promising but then you are so disappointed when you watch the whole movie. I doubt I'll remember having watched it in a few years time but it certainly wasn't bad. The bartender says, "We're closed." A guy walks into a bar. The only saving grace is the short ninety minute running time. Sam politely and shyly asks the tenant to quiet down, only to have the door shut in his face. [5], On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 79% of 57 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.8/10. This 10-digit number is your confirmation number. Everything is well done in this film. At the motel the manager was having an affair with one of the victims. So maddening! Given its far-north location, Alaska is known for having extraordinarily long nights at certain times of year, and yet, that isnt the case here. More at Bernthal is somewhat more relaxed as a one-time tough guy just trying to come into his house justified, but, not to put too fine a point on it, so what. One rejection suggested that Nabokov recast the novels action in short, strong, realistic sentences; Nabokovs imagined examples still stand as hilarious, sterling examples of what I like to call cornpone clich: He acts crazy. The former Girls star, whose blooming career is still often seen as a response to his brief time on (and tumultuous exit from) that epochal HBO show, has spent the last few years playing one brooding knuckle-dragger after another, like hes trying to rid himself of whatever cooties Lena Dunham may have left behind. Don't listen to the bad reviews. As Sam recovers enough to go to Bernadette's home where he learns about the break-in. Variety and the Flying V logos are trademarks of Variety Media, LLC. Please try again. The professional hit-man responsible has been hired by a local woman to wipe out her husband but two other men are killed in the process. There's a confounding simplicity to Sweet Virginia, making its characters the load-bearing creeps of the film. An ex-rodeo rider strikes up a friendship with a young man who may be behind the violence occurring in their small town. Learn more. Elwood decides that its cleaner to remove witnesses, so he kills the I rarely write reviews but came on here as I was shocked at the low scores. Just okay. If you watch this film, be sure to have subtitles available because the actors constantly mumble their lines. All that said, the movie is well put together, enough so that if youre not entirely tired of its clichs, it might constitute a tolerable entertainment. Smart and well-acted, Sweet Virginia delivers a tense, atmospheric thriller that transcends genre conventions even as it embraces them. Lets face it: Most Coen brothers knockoffs arent very good. "Sweet Virginia" premiered in the Spotlight Narrative section of the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival. Rated R Dster, ruhig und intensivierend erzhlt, elegant gefilmt und gut besetzt. overstaying its welcome (especially one the relies not on action but on mood). Like any good noir, all comes down to desire and absurd nihilism. By continuing, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Abbott has been garnering a lot of interest since The Sinner and he is the unpredictable bad guy here, he never wastes a single scene. there's not much happening here that you haven't seen before, but this is one of those movies that adheres to the fact that filmmaking has a hard time re-inventing the wheel again and again, and just sticks with its homage to the genre. The series was set in Wyoming even before Wyoming became a state in 1890. We want to hear what you have to say but need to verify your email. Bernthal is one of those character actors that deserves these central roles, he tends to be relegated to supporting roles which is okay but not great. The movie is a beautifully photographed, moody story that favors style over substance. The police go through Elwood's belongings and find Lila's name and phone number. but the most comprehensive of maps. It's certainly worth the hour and a half you'd spend watching it. Made by fans in Aotearoa New Zealand. Filming Dates. . Bernthal dials things down to play Sam who, despite an impressive physique, has Fargo. It was released on November 17, 2017, by IFC Films. murder. Take this bit of diner conversation between Sam, a onetime rodeo champ played by Jon Bernthal, and Elwood (no really), a contract killer played by Christopher Abbott. Elwoods on a short fuse, you see; he drives around town talking to himself, making profane observation about the locals; after one pay phone conversation near a convenience store, Elwood kicks the crap out of some punks who are looking at him funny; with every line reading and twitch of the shoulder you can see Abbott congratulating himself on playing a genuine PSYCHO whos also complex because of his terse one-sided phone conversations with his terminally ill mother down south of Alaska. It oozes it from every frame. My fiance and i sat here for like 5 minutes afterwards coming up with different endings that would have been betterdid the writer just give up? Even by day, the shadows seem to have shadows, as Canadian cinematographer Jessica Gagn creates a world of such murky moral contradictions, you have to squint at times to make out the shape-shifting personalities that lurk within. Problem with small towns is everybody leaves 'em. Sams special woman, Bernadette (Rosemarie DeWitt) is now a widow, because Elwood (no really) killed her husband and two other guys in the movies opening scene. And who is this monster, who brings violence to a community that needs guns only for hunting, changing the entire dynamic of a town so small that everyone (believes he) knows everyones business already? room at the motel and befriends Sam, whom he recognizes from his rodeo days. U-Turn. The story is not all that interesting and in the end I just did not care in the least what happened to anyone in the movie. And it's always good to see Jon Bernthal in a lengthy role. A former rodeo star, now a motel manager, meets a young man who is responsible for the violence that suddenly has seized his small town. It was released on November 17, 2017, by IFC Films . Nothing worse than that ott ,,feel this now ,,base obviousness. New York City, New York Most Hallmark movies have similar plots or storylines. Strong yet soft-spoken, The Walking Dead star Benthal plays Sam Rossi, an ex-rodeo champ who now operates a spartan motel on what feels like the brink of the world. The two develop a strange relationship that slowly escalates while we find out who owes Elwood, why Elwood is owed and how Elwoods debt cant be paid. Pros: It's a classic case of a little becoming a lot onscreen on the basis of boasting dark atmosphere, eerie score and superb performances. We wont be able to verify your ticket today, but its great to know for the future. The specific setting of Alaska isnt relevant (in fact, the movie was filmed to The movie opens with a brutal killing, as an outsider cruises into town, lurking in his car outside a local bar till well after midnight before bursting in on a friendly card game and murdering all three men in the establishment, taking money from the register practically as an afterthought. Please check Fandango and Atom Tickets to see if the . They won't be able to see your review if you only submit your rating. Elwood says his father died in a prison riot in 1996 and shows a strong disdain for him. her sexual liaisons with Sam. So, let's answer the question. The action in the film is great and you'll be engaged, but you'll be wishing there was more character development to really pull things together. When Mitchell tells him to leave because the bar is closed, the man threatens him and angrily leaves. I understand - and appreciate - the unnatural darkness that some directors like to use to set the theme. Elwood searches the room but finds that Sam has escaped through the bathroom window. The film doesn't have much of a point, as its characters are reductive variables in an inevitable equation of carnage. I dare you to try that today. Sweet Virginia Trailer #1 (2017): Check out the new TV spot starring Jon Bernthal, Christopher Abbott, and Imogen Poots! A big pile of nothingness. Cold in July. 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