Virgil Bliss
Picture:
C+ Sound: C+ Extras: C+ Main program: C+
Though
not part of the Dogme school of bad video-shot films, Joe Maggio’s Virgil Bliss (2001) still cannot
overcome the format, despite a cast with chemistry and acting talent. Part of this comes from the inexperience of
first-time director Maggio, who has had past experience in the medium, but not
at the helm.
Clint
Jordan is the title character, trying to adjust to life in the real world after
spending 12 years in prison for nearly killing someone in an armed
robbery. He is naïve and starts out in a
halfway house. Too bad he also starts to
fall for a hooker (Kirsten Russell) in a very clichéd situation. The actors are not bad, maybe a bit above the
material, but they would have been on a roll if the material had been less
typical.
Part of
the effect of the videotaping is to try to make it gritty. Mike Figgis’ Leaving Las Vegas (1995) was shot in Super 16mm and it was that
film I kept waiting for this film to be as good as. It never made it. I am curious to see what Maggio does next,
simply because he willing to take on grittier subject matter. The fact that this was unrated did not mean
it was groundbreaking or shocking in any way.
The
letterboxed 1.78 X 1 image is fair, but its limits show throughout. This was made only months before 9/11, giving
us some of the last footage of the area before those events. The Dolby Digital 2.0 is simple Stereo with
no surround information whatsoever.
Extras include an acceptable commentary by Maggio, a brief segment on
the film from The Sundance Channel (under 10 minutes), brief production and
biography text on Maggio and the film, and trailers for five First Run DVDs,
including this one.
I also
got the gimmick of the name and what it meant to the character, and how it
defined him, but very little smart is made of that either. We have seen all of this, but done better, so
only expect so much bliss if
you see this one.
- Nicholas Sheffo
