By Lee Pfeiffer
Vic is an extraordinary short film that runs 30 minutes but packs an emotional wallop. The movie is steeped in tragedy, from its subject matter to the story behind its production. The movie stars veteran character actor Clu Gulager in a career-topping performance as a once-popular leading man who has now been relegated to eeking out an existence in his modest L.A. home. Living alone and largely forgotten by his peers and friends, Vic tries to cheerfully get through each day, bolstered by the companionship of his loyal dog. His home is a modest shrine to his former achievements. The walls boast faded newspaper articles about him from bygone eras and there are tattered 8x10 stills of hit movies from happier times. Vic is feeling the pain of his twilight years. He still cuts a handsome figure and can joke and flirt with the ladies but he is relegated to having to use rolls of pennies to pay for necessities in local stores. In one poignant scene, he flirts with a charismatic cashier who is his own age (played in by Gulager's real-life wife Miriam Byrd-Nethery). When he returns to the store the following day to ask her on a date, he is told she was fired because she couldn't keep up with the work load. Vic's world is on the verge of total collapse when potential salvation arrives in the form of a phone call from out of the blue. An influential young director is interested in hiring him for a key supporting role in a major dramatic film. The news sends Vic into elation, then panic when he learns he has to do a reading for the part. This will require him to sit in front of the director and other key crew members and convince them that he is the man for the job. Nevertheless, Vic studies the script diligently, determined to knock 'em dead and revive his dormant career. Then he learns that his beloved dog has been stolen by a local miscreant who he refused to give money to. With his appointment for the reading looming, Vic becomes completely distraught as he searches frantically for his dog. He then makes a frantic drive to the production office to see if he can salvage this one last chance to restore his dignity. The highlight of the movie is Vic's reading of the script for the director and producers. He has dyed his hair jet black, but its a botched job and makes him look foolish. Nevertheless, he is treated reverently by those present and, in an inside joke, he is complimented on his performance in McQ, the John Wayne detective flick in which Gulager co-starred in real life. The film offers some tantalizing, brief appearances by such fine veteran actors as John Phillip Law, Carol Lynley, Richard Herd, Gregory Sierra, Robert Lyons and Peter Mark Richman. You fervently wish the movie was longer in order to capitalize on this extraordinary gathering of talented people. When it's time for Vic to do his reading, director Stallone has ratcheted up the suspense to an almost unbearable level and Gulager pulls out all the stops in a performance that becomes increasingly brilliant.
Vic is based on a story by Sage Stallone, the son of Sylvester Stallone, who won an award as Best New Filmmaker at the Boston Film Festival. Tragically, he died in 2012 of heart problems at age 36. The movie was a family affair for Clu Gulager, with his son John serving as cinematographer and editor (along with Bob Murawski, who would go on to win an Oscar for his editing of The Hurt Locker). Another son, Tom Gulager, gives a fine performance as the young director who holds the key to the old actor's career resurrection. The movie also gave Gulager the opportunity to play a scene with his wife Miriam, who would pass away shortly thereafter. Knowing this adds even more poignancy to the sequence. Stallone shows that he had great potential as a filmmaker but perhaps his greatest legacy is the fact that he co-founded Grindhouse Releasing with Bob Murawski, a company that built a loyal following by restoring and releasing niche market gems. Appropriately, Vic has been released on DVD as a special edition by Grindhouse. The DVD includes a remarkably intimate and revealing interview with Clu Gulager, whose modesty is refreshing and admirable. He says he never became a major star but "was not irrelevant". Indeed, Gulager made one of the most indelible screen villains of all time in Don Siegel's 1964 version of The Killers, playing a psychotic hit man opposite Lee Marvin. Gulager speaks lovingly of his family and his joy at having this fine starring role this late in his career. When asked what the next stop is for him, he says bluntly "the grave". Fortunately, he looks far too fit for that to be imminent and one hopes he does get some good film roles in the future.
The commercial prospects for Vic were always limited due to the fact that it is a short film. The mind reels at the potential the story might have had if proper funding could have been found to make this into a feature length movie. Gulager, who is simply superb throughout, might well have scored an Oscar nomination.
The DVD also includes a montage of still photos from Gulager's career. It's an excellent presentation of an admirable film by a talented director who was denied his chance to fulfill his potential.
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