Villanelle Review
Three things that I find very important for a writer/director to know are their story, audience, and location. You need to cater to their needs with a compelling story and also a location/setting adequate enough to produce the atmosphere you intend to create. Rick Laprade accomplishes both of those things in his feature “Villanelle”. The opening scene scanning the oceanfront of New Shoreham immediately hooked me in. There is quite the contrast during the entirety of the film. Day scenes seem white washed and fit the mood well. Bright lights and colors would not work what so ever with the tone Rick created. Night scenes are dark, as they should be but the right amount of lighting was placed on the actors. A lot of the time I get taken away from the story when scenes are too dark to focus in on, this wasn’t the case in Villanelle. It’s safe to say that visually, Laprade is on his A-Game throughout the entire film providing many memorable shots.
A relatable main character is all you can hope for. At first sight, we can tell the protagonist Burke (Tretheway) is a disheveled man. The way he presents himself isn’t very gentlemen like; with his tie askew. He is the anti Phillip Marlowe when it comes to fashion sense, but not by means of wit or banter. He is quick with his tongue. I find it interesting that in his first scene, his secretary is doing a word search that consists of glamorous destinations around the world like “Fort Meyers”, “Miami”, and “Melbourne”. I can sense that these characters do not want to be stuck on this tiny island, and that sense grows as the plot thickens. This isn’t your ordinary vampire flick. While most rely on special effects, makeup, etc Rick’s crutch is his writing. This is definitely a strongpoint of his.
Two scenes in this film really stick out to me, even months after my initial viewing. The strongest one being a flashback of Burke’s troubled past being a detective in Boston. A combination of shot selection, level of acting, and pure eeriness made that scene truly unforgettable. It reminded me of a scene from Gone Baby Gone, where a detective was in a similar situation. The other scene was the fight towards the end of the film. It was choreographed very well. You can tell bad fighting on screen, it looks awkward and jumbled; Rick’s fight choreographer David Lavallee Jr. did an excellent job with it. The punches/thuds felt hard hitting and most importantly: real.
I’m not calling this film a masterpiece by any means necessary. However I do think with the crew Rick has right now and the momentum he has been building, there is no doubt in my mind that given the right budget works of art will be made. To reiterate an earlier point, you need to be a strong storyteller to make it in the film business. To be able to convey your vision on screen is like throwing a dart at a board; it’s not always going to be a bull’s-eye but you can get pretty damn close. Rick hasn’t hit his target 100% yet, but give him a better weapon and he will be deadly.
7/10
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You can find out more about the director/writer Ricky Laprade by going to his Twitter, his website, or his IMDB page.