Stars: Jon Bernthal, Imogen Poots, Christopher Abbott
Storyline
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. Every character from his loved ones to his business patrons, plays a part in the unravelling of this community. Our aged hero must face his relationships of past and present to come up against this unpredictable predator.
Writers: Benjamin China, Paul China, Jon Bernthal, Imogen Poots, Christopher Abbott, Jon Bernthal, Imogen Poots, Christopher Abbott, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jared Abrahamson, Darcy Laurie, Odessa Young, Victoria Bidewell, Joseph Lyle Taylor, Therés Amee, Cameron Hilts, Jason Groves, Scott A. McGillivray, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Cast: Jon Bernthal -
Sam
Imogen Poots -
Lila
Christopher Abbott -
Elwood
Rosemarie DeWitt -
Bernadette
Jared Abrahamson -
Paul Anderson
Darcy Laurie -
Marty Petrowne
Odessa Young -
Maggie
Victoria Bidewell -
Joseph Lyle Taylor -
Tom Barrett
Therés Amee -
Prostitute
Cameron Hilts -
Man
Jason Groves -
Paramedic #1
Scott A. McGillivray -
Lloyd Stothers
Country: Canada, USA
Language: English
Release Date: 3 Jan 2017
Filming Locations: Hope, British Columbia, Canada
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
The China Brothers original spec script for Sweet Virginia was high on the Black List in 2012 - an annual list of the best screenplays in Hollywood yet to be produced. See more »
User Review
Author:
Rating: 7/10
In a small-town Alaska, a triple murder is committed one night. 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. The
killer sets up stall in a motel run by a former rodeo star.
The title Sweet Virginia refers to an earlier draft of the film set in
the American south involving a cowboy killer and all the rest of it.
Moving the setting further north to Alaska gives the film a different
edge, although it does render the title less meaningful. Its director
is Jamie M. Dagg recently made the Laos set chase film River (2015)
which was good, if a little minimalistic, but with Sweet Virginia he
definitely shows progress as a film-maker. This one is a little more
expansive in approach with more detailed characters and plot. You could
probably fairly say that there is nothing especially new here but it is
held together with some good performances such as Jon Bernthal as the
motel owner who is not your typical hero in that he takes a beating
when you don't expect him to and generally is quite meek in direct
contrast to how he looks, even better was Christopher Abbott in the
role of the killer who embarks in a bromance of sorts with Bernthal's
character, Abbott's portrayal carried an authentic threat and you
really believed his character was capable of violence. Imogen Poots
doesn't get as much screen-time as the two male leads but her character
is perhaps the key to the whole story in that it is her decisions that
set the wheels in motion and continue to propel the narrative into the
abyss. It's a pretty satisfying film overall and will be of interest to
those with a taste for American neo-noirs.
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