DVD: Vic (2006)

July 11, 2014 | By Mark R. Hasan

Film: Excellent

Transfer: Excellent

Extras: Good

Label: Moonblood Pictures / Grindhouse Releasing

Region: 0 (NTSC)

Released: December 10, 2013

Genre: Drama / Short Film

Synopsis: After years of working in the margins, a down-an-out actor almost misses what may be his last chance to pocket a real role.

Special Features: Clu Gulager Trailer Gallery / Cast & Crew Bios / Clu Gulager interview.

Review:

The late Sage Stallone’s half-hour film received a DVD release in late 2013, and it’s a rather bittersweet release, given the film marks the unfulfilled talent of Stallone’s obvious skills as a filmmaker, and a rare starring role for Clu Gulager, whose own career began as an up and coming actor in TV to small feature films, but dovetailed back into TV where he maintained steady appearances in numerous series before officially retiring around 1999.

Stallone and Will Huston’s story follows a down-and-out-actor / faded star who swallows his dignity and reluctantly auditions for a small role. Gulager’s performance is often brutally honest, especially in conveying the pain of a lonely, debt-ridden aging man, and it’s really a showpiece for the Gulager who regards Vic as his proper acting swansong, even though he’s made small appearances in the films of son John (including the wretched Piranha 3DD).

Gulager’s best-known role is as the second-fiddle assassin in Don Siegel’s The Killers (1964), and he also took a stab at directing – the haunting short film A Day with the Boys (1969), which should’ve led to more work behind the camera. As Vic, Gulager also benefits from being surrounded by a solid cast which includes son Tom, and veteran actors Carol Lynley, Gregory Sierra, John Phillip Law, and Peter Mark Richman (although in fairness, the last three have virtual cameos playing contemporary actors reading for the same part as Vic).

With a score by Franco Micalizzi and gritty cinematography by son John, it’s a straight-shooting little gem with a finale that’s at least as emotionally grim as Gulager’s own ’69 short.

Released in a vintage snapper case by Moonblood Pictures, the DVD includes a lengthy (if not a little bit rambling) interview with Gulager, plus a trailer gallery of the star’s prior work. Stallone, whose sporadic acting includes a supporting role in Rocky V (1990), has a quick cameo as a doctor early in the film, but in addition to being Sylvester Stallone’s son, he’s best known for co-founding the indie home video label Grindhouse Releasing, which champions cult films in exhaustive special editions (notably Corruption, The Big Gundown, and The Swimmer). Sage Stallone died in 2012 at the age of 36.

External References:
Editor’s Blog — IMDB — Composer Filmography

Vendor Search Links:
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