By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 1.5 cats
Director: Deborah Kampmeier
Starring: Daphne Rubin-Vega | Elisabeth Moss | Robin Wright Penn
Country: united_states
Year: 2004
Running time: 114
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0368411/combined
Michael says: “I was so intrigued by the premise and the preview of this little American indie, but it turned out to be a disappointing mess. Deborah Kampmeier’s first film follows a young woman, whose family are all born again Christian’s, struggling with her own identity as the unrequited love of a boy in her school. Jessie is independent, delivering newspapers in the wee hours of the morning, doing ‘a man’s job’ on the darkened streets of an unnamed small town. She smokes and drinks to excess, and augments her wardrobe and her make-up drawer by shoplifting at the local mall. She adores her younger sister, a track athlete who ‘runs for God.’ Her father is a hypocritical lout who cheats on his wife while spouting religious claptrap. Her mother (played beautifully by Robin Wright Penn) is quietly obedient, but miserable inside. After passing out from alcohol and drugs, Jessie wakes up mysteriously pregnant, convinced that God has come to her and impregnated her with the Christ child. Guess what, the town doesn’t take it so well.
“Jessie becomes more of an outcast than ever, and comes to the serendipitous rescue of Frances (poor Daphne Rubin-Vega) who is fleeing from an abusive husband, and becomes Jessie’s only friend. Unless, of course, you count the homeless and troubled Lorna, who endlessly searches for her lost babies, wailing in Spanish. There is all sorts of religious imagery and symbolism, and things just spiral down bringing Jessie to unbelievable depths, all the while clinging to her own, unique faith that God is within
her.
“The film is an angry statement about the treatment of women not only in religion, but in the world. Jessie wonders why Mary was relegated to the unfortunate status of Mother of God… or why Jesus couldn’t be a woman when she returns a second time, or why God can’t be a woman. Women are either cheated on and miserable, abused, good girls, mad, or willful and rebellious. The one nicely developed and complex relationship is found between Jessie and her sister Katie, but Kampmeier is just trying to say too much and loses the strong points of her screenplay among the kitchen sinks. 1 ½ cat”
Bruce says: “Jesse Reynolds (Elisabeth Moss) is a troubled kid who is on her way to self destruction. She has a paper route, delivering morning news in the pre-dawn hours. She tosses the papers from her car but has to deliver some customers on foot dodging mean dogs and the occasional derelict. A crazy woman who may be psychic frequently steps in front of Jesse’s moving car; an abused housewife is rescued up by Jesse. Jesse’s only constant companion is a bottle of Jack Daniels. Her sister Katie is born again, along with their parents. Katie is a runner. When she performs well at a track meet, Jesse hugs her as she crosses the finish line but Katie is uncomfortable being touched by her sister. Jesse has a crush on Michael, a preppy kid who has no interest in her; Shane who works with Michael at a local diner wants to marry Jesse.
“On the night of a big dance Jesse drinks a bit too much and she runs into Michael in the woods behind the school. He gives her a pill and, as soon as the pill kicks in, he rapes Jesse. The crazy woman happens to be near the rape site. When Jesse discovers she is pregnant, she thinks she is giving birth to the next Christ child. As her secret becomes public knowledge, Michael ignores her and Shane still wants to marry her.
“In one beautiful scene, Jesse’s mother (Robin Penn Wright) is clicking through old sides on the carousel when Jesse walks into the room. They end up dancing as the slides are reflected on their clothing as they pass in front of the projector. If only VIRGIN had more scenes that were this carefully orchestrated. Filmmaker Deborah Kampmeier has taken some interesting ideas and has made mincemeat of them. The born-again aspects of the film are too caricatured to be taken seriously. The crazy woman and the abused lady appear and disappear with great regularity but add little to the film’s impact. Elisabeth Moss gives and uneven performance which, on the surface, sounds somewhat appropriate, however she appears uneven in the wrong places.
“Robin Wright Penn is listed as an executive producer and appears in VIRGIN as well. Why she was attracted to this project is a mystery. Was it the outline she saw before the script was written? It is inconceivable to imagine she was attracted to any other aspect of the film – unless it is the message. 1.5 cats”