The Velocity of Gary (1998)

User Rating:

4.7/10   

Director:

Dan Ireland

Writer (WGA):

James Still (written by)

Release Date:

16 July 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Plot:

Salma Hayek stars as a woman in love with an adult-film actor. Their relationship gets complicated when...

Plot Keywords:

Dying | Topless | Saxophonist | Holocaust Survivor | Male Prostitute

Cast

Danny Arroyo	...	Thug #1 on Street
Jason Cutler	...	Romaine
Olivia d'Abo	...	Veronica
Elizabeth D'Onofrio	...	Dorothy
Hakan D'Onofrio	...	Running Boy
Vincent D'Onofrio	...	Valentino
Keegan de Lancie	...	Choir Boy
Ravell Dameron	...	Receptionist in Clinic
Yvette Diaz	...	Young Mary Carmen
Marion Eaton	...	Miss Sweetheart
Phillip Esposito	...	Phone Sex Guy
Luchisha Evans	...	Waitress
Salma Hayek	...	Mary Carmen
Ethan Hawke	...	Nat
Cesar Herrera	...	Thug #2 on Street

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexual content, language, some drug use and violent images.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Cineville

Quotes:

Venus: Twixt opptimist and pessimist: the difference is droll.
Coco: One sees the doughnut, the other the hole.
Venus: [both] FAGOT!

Movie Connections:

Featured in My Big Break (2008)

A story with subtle poignancy, as charming as its weaknesses

What a pleasure it is to discover a little film which presents little pieces of your own life story. This is a film that I imagine many will question what the hell is the point. It feels like an exploratory independent film that doesn't try to be very clever or cool, just an ordinary story with plenty of room for randomness. As it fits in neither the energetic class of cinema characterized by Tarantino and Fellini, nor the understated class a la Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Gus Van Sant, it won't impress the entertainment seekers and may not work for the purists. That said, I personally liked it more than not.

The great Michelangelo Antonioni said that films are not to be understood; they are to be experienced. As a film VELOCITY may not score high, but viewing it was an experience which I will not forget soon. The scenes with the deaf boy in drag were simply poignant and memorable. I'll never forget the priceless look on his face when his wig was pulled away by the rascals. It was a look which captured a thousand unspoken words that few, if any, Hollywood star would be capable of replicating. His pursuit of Gary brings back traces of my own memory. For me, this character was the primary saving grace of the film; his "acting" was superb, so heart-felt that I'm not sure if it's acting or reality--probably a hybrid of both.

In summary, VELOCITY is a film where some fragments are better than the whole package. Whether or not you can enjoy the film probably depends on how much your life experience draws you to the characters.