Review of Virgil Bliss (2001) by Jamie B — 13 Oct 2011

Low budget, high art and realism in this film about a convict getting out after a decade. The film has an almost documentary feel to it. Virgil is my favorite anti-hero since Silence of the Lambs. The big lug tries so hard to be good, and actually follows through on it, once he's released from prison. He's a positive role model for his halfway house buddy, and love's his woman even though shes quite the wounded bird, and pecks.

Virgil gets a job, has a stable residence, and is in a relationship. As he gets set up in his new life, we see glimpses of how VB wound up in prison in the first place, and in the last moments of the film find him in the same circumstances as the crime that got him put away. Will he make the same choice? Regardless, you will still root for Virgil. That's the beauty of this film. Its all about VB.