Cinema Review: Virginia Minnesota (2019) is a feel-good story about friendship and renewal

Virginia Minnesota (2019), directed by Daniel Stine, is a heart-felt film with the right mix of drama, comedy, and adventure. The story is about two young women—Addison (Aurora Perrineau) and Lyle (Rachel Hendrix)—who embark on an illuminating 24-hour journey, unlocking long-forgotten memories and exploring a world of fantastical creatures. There are both comical and touching results along the way. In the end, they realize what it means to truly believe and how their friendship can overcome any obstacle. Viewing this movie is a feel-good experience; this is a story the world needs right now.

Addison and Lyle were childhood friends torn apart by a tragedy at the school they attended together. Now, in order for a will to be opened, a group of the former students need to be present at the school. Addison refuses to show up, so Lyle steps up to go get Addison and bring her to the school. The contrast between the personalities of the two women—and their current professions—is apparent. Addison is a cynical tour-guide who wears Viking garb and gives monotonic history lessons about the Nordic people to unimpressed tourists on ship-based excursions at sea. In contrast, Lyle is a nomadic travel blogger always up for a new adventure with her robotic sidekick named “Mister”. It is fun to witness the young women reconnect after many years; it is easy to cheer for Lyle as she convinces Addison to embark on the journey.

The comedy elements of the story provide some relief to what is otherwise somber subject matter. For example, the women steal a car from Addison’s ex-fiancee, evade the police, and run through the woods. The wonderful production values of this indie film are in full bloom when the women experience a “Terrificarium”, featuring fantastic creatures, carnival characters, and sword-wielding knights in armor. The viewer is pleasantly surprised by this turn of events, and quickly realizes that unexpected things can happen in this film.

Besides the comedy and the visually striking elements, the film has themes of friendship overcoming adversity, and even female empowerment. Addison struggles with the buried childhood memories of the tragedy, and feels guilty about what happened that night long ago. During the climax of the story, Lyle is there to comfort her. Ultimately, the two women had to re-live the incident in their minds in order to move forward with their lives.

The story imparts a real sense of solidarity and renewal, which is very satisfying. The viewer is able to witness the two women overcome obstacles, reckon with the past, and grow as a result. Virginia Minnesota is the type of quality entertainment that everyone should watch. It is like a classic Hallmark movie with mischievous comedy and fantasy elements thrown in for good measure. Highly recommended.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Blu-ray Review: The Initiation (1984) is a slasher with mystery and psychological thriller plot points

Image
The Initiation (1984)—directed by Larry Stewart—is a slasher film that incorporates mystery and psychological thriller plot points. It was a late entry in the slasher cycle that began with John Carpenter’s Halloween (1978), and continued with imitators such as Friday the 13th (1980). But The Initiation proves to be a film far superior to many other movies that preceded it. In this college-based slasher, Kelly (Daphne Zuniga) is a student who has been plagued by a recurring nightmare. In addition to dealing with the troubling dream, she is pledging a sorority and must break into her father’s department store at night—alongside some other pledges—to complete a hazing ritual. What begins as an innocent prank turns deadly when the young coeds get locked inside the building and are stalked by a killer. This film has a fascinating story, interesting characters, and stylish cinematography. Although it is not entirely original, The Initiation takes the slasher movie to unexpected places.
Read more

Blu-ray Review: Slumber Party Massacre III (1990) has beach volleyball, dancing party girls, and a Driller Killer!

Image
Slumber Party Massacre III (1990) is a fun, thrilling sequel to the original slasher cult classic. Jackie Cassidy (Keely Christian) is a high school girl who hosts a slumber party at her house while her parents are out of town. At the party, coeds drink beer, eat snack food, and dance to the music. They are having a great time by themselves until a few guys from school crash the party as a practical joke. Meanwhile, a mysterious serial killer with an oversized power drill is stalking Jackie Cassidy and her friends. As the party guests start turning up dead, the girls and guys have to fight for their lives. There is a suspenseful story, good acting, excellent use of music, and gory effects. The story keeps the viewer in suspense wondering the identity of the Driller Killer and who will end up dead next. At the beginning of the film, Jackie Cassidy and Diane (Brandi Burkett) are sunbathing at the beach while watching their friends play volleyball. While they are discussing life, an o
Read more

Blu-ray Review: Double Exposure (1982) is a mystery-psychological thriller with slasher elements

Image
Double Exposure (1982)—written and directed by William Byron Hillman—is a mystery-psychological thriller with slasher and giallo elements. Michael Callan stars as Adrian Wilde, a prolific photographer for men’s magazines, whose life begins to unravel when he experiences disturbing dreams in which he kills some of his models through various gruesome means. Meanwhile, a killer is stalking and murdering women on the street. Two LAPD sergeants are trying to track down the serial killer. When Adrian learns that some of his models have met with violent deaths, he begins to suspect that he may actually be the killer. Double Exposure features an interesting story, very good acting, and a haunting music score. Right at the beginning of the film, the two LAPD sergeants are seen sitting in an unmarked car waiting for the serial killer to appear so that they can apprehend him or her. A policeman dressed up as a prostitute to attract the killer walks by on the sidewalk. When the police decoy reac
Read more