Director: Vincent Gallo
Year Released: 2003
Rating: 3.0
Strange meditative film by Gallo about a motorcycle racer who drives a van through America, tries to fall in love with various women he meets (but quickly abandons) and finds himself in an almost spiritual encounter with the love of his life (Chloe Sevigny) and the heartbreaking discovery that he can never be with her again. There isn't much in terms of character arc or narrative - Gallo's character never 'learns' anything - so the only revelation is for the audience, who comes to understand why the racer is so locked inside himself. It's more of a conceptual work than anything, with the 'idea' of making a film based on (I'm assuming) Gallo's own desperation, hurt and dejection being more important than bothering with a specific story or its development - despite its flaws (a gratuitous but hauntingly personal sexual encounter with Sevigny; an absolute and unshakable sense of self-importance), it's a movie of such raw power I don't believe it can be so easily dismissed.
