Sweet Virginia (2017)

This was a strong movie, yet subtle in every way. The acting is superb and cinematography is profoundly impressive. It's a simple plot, but sticks in your head after, very thought provoking. I was impressed with Jon Bernthal's blunt emotional performance as well as Christopher Abbot's take on playing a psychopath with a conscience. It's a mystery, drama that will haunt you at the end. The China Brothers pay close attention to detail and focus in on unexpected, interesting camera angles throughout the film.

This movie is ALL about 'less-is-more', unpretentious dialogue and realistic acting. It has its own style though, somewhere in between Robert Altman and The Coen Brothers. I think it's a perfect movie and one hell of an unexpected 'classic' of the year!

Fmovies: One of those movies where the trailer looks so promising but then you are so disappointed when you watch the whole movie. This movie joins in with shows like true detective. All people are so sad all the time. They are all somehow broken inside. This can be interesting with the right story and good execution but that is what's missing here.

I actually like when actors don't enunciate everything crystal clear but in this movie the line delivery of the men is just plain mumbling. I also have no problem when there are longer scenes where no one speaks but then I should either see some development in the characters by watching their body language or mimic or what they do. But here you have scenes that seem as if the director had to fill time which seems very odd because the movie is very short in the first place.

I like Benthal but that this movie fails to deliver anything is not the fault of the cast but of the choices the director makes.

If you watch this film, be sure to have subtitles available because the actors constantly mumble their lines. It is beyond annoying. Jon Berenthal sleepwalks as if sedated with a massive dose of thorazine. The rest of the cast seem a little bit less asleep. 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. The only saving grace is the short ninety minute running time. I can usually stick with crime stories that have a sense of humor. Sweet Virginia has no wit or wisdom within the script. There is no reason whatsoever to watch this snooze fest.

Sweet Virginia fmovies. This movie sure was well worth my time. A decent thriller drama, the villain in this movie did an exemplary performance, certainly award winning.

If you like slow burn thrillers that gets into your skin and makes you want to guess the next scene, this is for you.

The problem that eclipses everything else in this film is the horrible lighting - an overdone effect. I understand - and appreciate - the unnatural darkness that some directors like to use to set the theme. But in this film, the consequences are very negative.

The worst part was where the antagonist and an arbitrary hired helper break in to a house to steal money. The actions that follow between these two individuals and the occupant of the house were impossible for me to discern and could only be guessed at from subsequent developments. This spoiled the film completely for me, as I regard it as a crucial event.

Other than that fatal flaw, the rest of the story earns an "okay enough" rating from me. Everything else that happened in the dark was simply dialogue (or sex), so no further guessing was required. Nothing special developed, Berenthal delivers one surprise in the result in an altercation with a motel guest but everything else proceeds entirely predictably. Predictability is not always a bad thing and I'm sure that many viewers will be satisfied with the outcome.

Incidentally, the "relationship" between the protagonist and antagonist, as described in the summary and a few reviews, is completely exaggerated. The superficial representation of a couple of brief interactions between these two makes this alleged relationship of very little importance in the story.

Still, the cast did very well with the material they were given, so no fault of theirs - and they deserve full credit for saving the director from abject failure.

Problem with small towns is everybody leaves 'em. Thus small town stories tend to be based on romanticized memories (be it good or bad) from the point of city slickers. And since most folks reside in giant metropolises, it becomes difficult to pronounce judgement on this evaporating way of life.

Sweet Virginia is one such film beast. It is both good and bad. A good film, about bad people, but chiefly it is about America.

Set in murky Alaska, but filled with soft, southern accented characters, it takes place in a tiny, forgotten place, where people struggle for money, hide their histories, wear baseball caps, drive pickups, move at a snail's pace, and settle their matters in a violent fashion.

At the centre of a nifty noire tangle is an uncomfortable buddy-buddy relationship between an aw-shucks former rodeo star trying unsuccessfully to live a low-key life as a motel owner, and a troubled, snaky hit man. Jon Bernthal is terrific as the reluctant good guy, who innocently befriends the dark stranger in town - a perfectly tense and edgy Christopher Abbott. We know this won't end well, but that is not the point. This is less about the resolution and more about the journey.

"Sweet Virginia" dares to peek under the covers of a sleepy place rampant with familiarity but teeming with excruciating loneliness. One that usually keeps it's secrets well buried. Usually.