Tag Archives: 2023

virginia madsen in the portrait

The Portrait

I think of all the “new to me” films I’ve watched as part of this whole thing, The Portrait was one that was pretty close to the bottom of the list.

I’m not a fan of this particular type of horror, and I could tell from the trailer what kind it was going to be. And, you know… That’s OK – I won’t ever rubbish a film just because it’s not for me, but it doesn’t make me feel any better about watching them either. Truthfully, if Virginia Madsen’s name wasn’t attached I wouldn’t entertain it. BUT – I also had The Haunting in Connecticut in mind, I thought that was going to go one way and it didn’t, so…

The Portrait isn’t classed as horror, more a psychological thriller, but it amounts to the same thing in my mind. It’s a British film from 2023 and was released straight to digital markets.

Alex (Ryan Kwanten) suffers in an accident, he survives but he remains in a pretty much catatonic state and has no real memory of his life before. He’s alive but his interaction with the world around him is minimal at best. His wife, Sofia (Natalia Cordova-Buckley) is doing her best to look after him but is struggling.

In an attempt to jog his brain and his memory back into gear she takes him back to his family home in the hopes that being there will spark, something.

Not long after they arrive she comes across a portrait in the attic painted by a long dead relative of her husband. The thing is, he’s a dead ringer for her husband and Sofia becomes more and more convinced that something else is going on here the more she stares at it.
Virginia Madsen as Mags in The Portrait, standing confidently in a dimly lit room. She wears an all-black outfit with gloves and a long gold medallion necklace. Her curly blonde hair frames her intense expression as she looks at a seated woman in a gray sweater. A man in a casual t-shirt sits nearby, observing the conversation. The background features soft natural light streaming through windows, casting shadows in the rustic interior.Not long after moving in, cousin Mags (Virginia Madsen) comes calling to check in. She seems to know a lot more about the family history and lets Sofia in on a few chilling details of the man in the portrait. It turns out he was gifted, but not so much of a nice chap – In fact he was pretty much run out of town not long after the portrait in question was finished.

From there, it’s pretty much Alex getting more and more out of character, Mags getting more and more mysterious and Sofia getting more and more concerned until things escalate and, well – Yes.
Virginia Madsen as Mags in The Portrait, leaning closely over a seated man with an intense, almost sinister expression. Her blonde curls frame her face as she looks down at him, her presence looming over his shoulder. The man, with a brooding and contemplative expression, stares downward, seemingly lost in thought. The dim lighting and muted color tones add to the mysterious and tense atmosphere.There aren’t many surprises to be had from this film unfortunately.

Virginia Madsen in this, isn’t at her best. But she doesn’t have much to work with either. Mags is almost like a Scooby Doo villain in this one (and not a good one like she played in Where’s my Mummy?), you know she’s up to no good – She might as well put a sign around her neck and ring a bell. All those sly and knowing looks she gives while employing every means of avoidance she can muster. You know the one.
Virginia Madsen as Mags in The Portrait, captured in a close-up shot with an intense and enigmatic expression. Her curly blonde hair frames her face as she gazes forward, her eyes conveying a mix of curiosity and authority. The dim, moody lighting accentuates the contours of her face, adding to the film’s mysterious and suspenseful atmosphere.Did I like it? – Well. I didn’t hate it. Would I recommend it? Well. Kind of, I mean if you like this kind of film, and I know lots do, then there are far worse examples of it out there you could go with, it’s actually quite a well made film. I think for me the story lets it down mainly.

Availability:

So far it’s not had a physical release so you’ll need to purchase it digitally if you want to see it. It’s available on Amazon Prime, or check your usual service to see if they have it.

Trailer:

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virginia madsen in one day as a lion

One Day as a Lion

One Day as a Lion is a film from the mind of Scott Caan, (son of James Caan). He wrote it and he stars in it alongside Frank Grillo and J, K, Simmons.

This was my first time watching this one, not a rewatch as most of them have been so far and while I did know it existed it was because of JK Simmons and not Virginia Madsen, it was on my radar to watch a bonus when I found out Virginia was part of the cast.

The film follows Jackie Powers (James Caan) as he makes his way to his sons court case in order to stop him doing some jail time. He feels badly that his son is following in his own foot steps and he’s determined that he won’t follow the same path.

But, to do that he has to do one more job. Because, don’t we all? Jackie is tasked with assassinating Walter Boggs (J. K. Simmons) because he owes a serious amount of money to Pauly Russo (Frank Grillo). Jackie isn’t the best at this kind of thing and it inevitably all goes wrong, all he actually does is succeed in pissing Walter off and almost accidentally takes one of the waitresses, Lola (Marianne Rendón) hostage while making his mistake.

It’s quickly apparent to Lola that she’s not in any real danger and she ends up wanting to help Jackie out after hearing his reasoning for doing what he’s doing. Lola decides one of the first things they should do is get some money and the best way she can think of doing that is conning it out of her Mother and this is where Virginia Madsen comes in, she plays Lola’s Mother.
Virginia Madsen as Valerie Brisky in One Day as a Lion, sitting in a wheelchair outside a weathered building with faded yellow walls. She wears a loose red patterned dress and has her hair in colorful curlers, exuding a mix of defiance and weariness. Her contemplative pose, with one hand resting on her chin, adds to the character’s eccentric yet determined presence in the sunlit, rural settingShe’s only in the film briefly but she certainly makes an impression. It’s another of those roles I’m glad to see her getting. One where she can actually act. Although I’ve watched too many of these kinds of roles together now at this point and while brilliant I am beginning to wonder about her being typecast, again.

From there we see the pair run into various adventures and scrapes with varying degrees of success. It’s sort of a typical road movie with the pair trying to do some good (in their own way) while being chased by the bad guys.

It’s quite an enjoyable film all told. It’s not the best film ever, but it’ll pass the time harmlessly enough. J. K. Simmons is always ace to watch, but like Virginia he’s not in the film as much as you’d like. Scott Caan I also have some time for, I liked him in Entourage and Hawaii 5-0 and so it’s good to see him in a big film. particularly one he wrote.

Virginia Madsen herself is also a fan of Scotts, she’d tell MovieWeb; “I really, really love Scott’s writing, I really responded to the script immediately. And I’ve been experimenting with comedy, which is not something that I was usually ever hired for. So it’s cool to learn a new skill later on”

Which is kind of cool for all involved.

Availability:

I’ve only ever seen it available on DVD as physical purchase, and that’s Region 1 only. It seems odd there is no Blu-Ray, but if it does exist I can’t find it. It’s available to buy on most of the popular streaming channels in SD, HD and 4K.

Trailer:

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