Vincent Gallo Movies
Steely-eyed and greasy-haired with an adventurous taste in fashion, Vincent Gallo has certainly achieved some level of name recognition for his arrogant eccentricity. Notorious for talking about himself at great length without ever really saying anything of consequence, he's become something of a hipster icon to legions of fans. Though claims about his home life are dubious, he was born in Buffalo, NY, as the middle child of Sicilian immigrants. Playing in garage bands at an early age, he ran away to New York City at 16 and proceeded to seek fame and fortune by hanging out with the right people. Working as a musician under various names and in numerous bands, he showed his paintings in trendy N.Y.C. galleries and made the short film If You Feel Froggy, Jump. Appropriately, his first film appearance was as himself for the New York Beat Movie (1981), starring painter Jean Michel Basquiat and other big-name art scenesters. This was followed by an appearance in the New York underground film The Way It Is (1984), starring a young Steve Buscemi and Rockets Redglare. Gallo started acting as a TV guest star to make money and also fell into modeling for the same reason, becoming a fixture in Calvin Klein advertisements for clothes and fragrances. After playing the lead in the little-seen Doc's Kingdom, he made brief appearances in the films Goodfellas, The House of the Spirits, and The Perez Family. During this time he also started working with French director Claire Denis, who cast him in the short film Keep It for Yourself, the made-for-TV U.S. Go Home, and its follow-up feature Nénette et Boni (1996).Back in the States, he played more significant roles in Arizona Dream, with Johnny Depp, the crime comedy Palookaville, and Abel Ferrara's The Funeral. After starring in Kiefer Sutherland's directorial debut Truth or Consequences, N.M., he released his own independent debut, Buffalo '66. Made with a budget of 1.5 million dollars, Gallo wrote, directed, starred in, and composed the music for this largely autobiographic comedy drama. Certainly not ignored by critics or festivals, Buffalo '66 gained him a solid fan base as well as a boost to his music career. He then formed the short-lived band Bunny with Lukas Haas and released two solo albums on Warp records. Continuing his acting career opposite young attractive actresses, he starred in the crime drama Freeway 2: Confessions of a Trickbaby, with Natasha Lyonne; the Spanish drama Stranded: Náufragos, with Maria de Medeiros; the thriller Hide and Seek, with Jennifer Tilly; and the romantic comedy Get Well Soon, with Courteney Cox. He also reunited with director Denis for a lead role in the strange sex horror film Trouble Every Day, opposite Tricia Vessey. In 2003, he made his second effort as writer/director/star for The Brown Bunny with Chloë Sevigny, which premiered to much derision at the Cannes Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- 1990
A number of colonial wars in Africa in the 1970s have resulted in the conscription of Alex's father Pedro into the Portuguese Army. The young man and his father write to one another frequently, and it seems as if they are still close. However, at some point, the letters stop coming. Alex and his mother are worried that Pedro might have been killed or captured, but that particular concern is soon replaced by another when they learn from a returning soldier that Pedro has been back in Portugal for several months. When he is persuaded to return to his home, it becomes clear that he might have been wiser to stay away. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vincent Gallo, Teresa Roby, (more)
Two children from a working-class family in New York struggle to understand the story of God versus Lucifer as they try to deal with a mentally ill mother in this intense, realistic, spiritual drama. Angela is ten-years-old and has visions of angels. She spends much of her time trying to comprehend the tale of God and Lucifer. She also tries to protect her baby sister, six-year-old, Ellie by cautioning her to stay clean and good lest the Devil take her away. Ellie and Angela have been moved several times in their life. Their father, Andrew, is a hard worker; their mother, Mae, is becoming increasingly mentally ill. The children frequently witness her outbursts, but can do nothing to stop her sad descent. Sometimes Angela spies on them as they make love. After Mae is finally placed in an institution the girls must spend many hours on their own. At one point they assist their pregnant sitter when her water breaks. At another they manage to get away from a child molester at a carnival. In the final scene, Angela decides to baptize herself in the river and finally finds the transformation she sought. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Ventimiglia, Miranda Stuart Rhyne, (more)
- 1993
- R
Director Emir Kusturica and screenwriter David Atkins crafted this absurdist comedy in which Johnny Depp plays Axel Blackmer, who lives in New York State and is obsessed with fish. He tags fish and monitors their habits for a living, but his greatest curiosity is when and how they dream. Axel's uncle, Leo Sweetie (Jerry Lewis) would prefer Axel take over the family business, a Cadillac dealership in Tucson, Arizona; against his better judgment, Axel drives from New York to Arizona to check out the lot and attend Leo's wedding to Millie (Paulina Porizkova), a woman who is hoping that marriage will keep her from crying all the time. While watching the Cadillacs, Leo meets Elaine Stalker (Faye Dunaway), the sexy widow of a wealthy mine owner, and the two strike up a romance, while Elaine's daughter Grace (Lili Taylor) wanders through her mother's home playing "Besame Mucho" on the accordion to her pet turtles. Needless to say, Warner Bros, the film's United States distributor, didn't figure this was a sure bet for box-office success, and they trimmed Arizona Dream of 22 minutes before putting it into limited release and eventually dumping it onto home video without opening it in most major cities. Kusturica's original 142-minute cut was released in Europe (where it did respectable if not ground-shaking business) and to a few art houses in America; the shortened 120-minute version is available on home video. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Johnny Depp, Jerry Lewis, (more)
Actor Vincent Gallo (The Funeral, Palookaville) made his feature directorial debut with this drama about convict Billy Brown (Gallo), released after half a decade spent behind bars. Drifting into downtown Buffalo, Billy kidnaps teen Layla (Christina Ricci) and has her pose as his loving wife when he visits his parents (Ben Gazzara and Anjelica Huston). Layla praises him and goes along with his fanciful tale that they met at CIA headquarters, where they both worked. Mom and dad not only fall for this, they are entranced by Layla, who soon begins to embellish her act. When she claims to be pregnant by Billy, he hustles her out to a bowling alley and on to a restaurant, where they run into trampy Wendy (Rosanna Arquette), who might be Billy's former girlfriend. Eventually, Billy seems ready to track down and kill the person he feels was responsible for his five years in the slammer. Shown at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vincent Gallo, Christina Ricci, (more)
- 1989
Grieving Jimmy (Vincent Gallo) is shocked to learn after his mother's death that his long-lost father Doc (Paul McIssac) is alive and living somewhere in Europe. Jimmy goes in search of his father, a former radical Weatherman from the 1960s who fled the country during the turbulent decade. Although he suffers from a mysterious ailment contracted in Africa, the drunken Doc now devotes his efforts to healing instead of politically motivated violence. Ruy Furtado co-stars with Cesar Monteiro and Roslyn Payne. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Starring:
- Paul McIsaac, Vincent Gallo, (more)
- 1990
- R
Less an example of the native giallo subgenre than an Italian attempt to imitate the erotic thrillers then popular in America, this film went so far as to use an English-language title and mask its director Enrico Grassi as "Bob J. Ross" even in Italy itself. The frequently nude Loredana Romito stars as Carla, a beautiful woman married to the owner of a luxurious hotel in the country. When her husband is blinded in an accident with a handsome young man on a motorcycle, Carla takes over the daily operations of the hotel and hires the motorcyclist, Alessio, as a handyman. When Carla discovers her blind husband sleeping with his mistress, she takes Alessio to bed and begins to sexually control him, eventually persuading him to push her husband off a cliff to his death. Unfortunately, the hotel maid discovers what has happened and attempts to blackmail Carla, receiving a bullet in the head for her efforts. After disposing of the body, Alessio and Carla engage in the film's central set piece, a blood-smeared sex scene which graphically fuses the lust for flesh and the lust for blood in a way that few American films have dared since the opening scene of Basic Instinct. It's a common enough occurrence in giallo films, however, and shouldn't offend many devotees, particularly coming as it does in the middle of a fairly bloodless endeavor as far as Italian thrillers go. John Armstead co-stars with Ann Margaret Hughes, James Villemaire, and Carmen Manzano. Various prints run 84 and 87 minutes. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi
- 1999
- R
Despite the efforts of her sleazy attorney, Mr. Butz (David Alan Grier), teen drug dealer/car thief Crystal (Natasha Lyonne) is sentenced to a 25-year prison term, the first segment of which will be served in a youth correctional facility where she will be treated for her rampant bulimia. There, in-between binge/purge marathons with her fellow eating-disordered inmates and relentless harassment of the hapless authorities, she fends off the lesbian advances of her psychotic cellmate, Cyclona (Maria Celedonio), a serial killer who's just received a life sentence. The two escape together and embark on a cross-country road trip in search of Sister Gomez (Vincent Gallo), the beneficent nun who protected Cyclona from the sexual predations of her family during her troubled childhood south of the border. Where writer/director Matthew Bright's original Freeway was a modern retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, Freeway 2 riffs on Hansel and Gretel; it borrows only the trailer-park trappings of the earlier film, making the titular allusion to automobiles somewhat tenuous. ~ Brian J. Dillard, Rovi
- Starring:
- Natasha Lyonne, Maria Celedonio, (more)
Wildly popular TV talk show host Bobby Bishop (Vincent Gallo) has a nervous breakdown during an on-camera interview with a pop starlet, with whom he makes a rather crude observation and offer. This lapse of taste sets off a series of scandals in his off-camera life, which his beleaguered agent (Jeffrey Tambor) is helpless to stop. Desperate for love, Bobby rushes to New York City to find his former girlfriend, Lily (Courteney Cox), who doesn't even like his show, and neither does her cross-dressing boyfriend (Tate Donovan). Can true love straighten out the messes that are these folks' lives? ~ Buzz McClain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Courteney Cox, Vincent Gallo, (more)
A darkly comic whodunit about greed, deceit, and romantic deception, Goodbye Lover stars Patricia Arquette as Sandra, a seemingly moral and obsessively cheerful woman who sells real estate and is fascinated by the movie The Sound Of Music. But Sandra has a secret; while she's married to Jake (Dermot Mulroney), an ad executive who is having problems with both his career and his drinking, she's having an affair with his brother, Ben (Don Johnson), a successful public relations man. Ben, on the other hand, is already dallying with Peggy (Mary-Louise Parker), a woman on his staff who is beautiful but insecure, though she has a darker side few people know about. When Ben decides to break it off with Sandra so he can pursue his relationship with Peggy, Sandra is furious, and, knowing Jake would be just as angry, tells him about their affair. A vengeful Jake confronts Ben, which leads to a knock-down, drag-out fight -- and Ben's death, as he falls from a window. Ben leaves behind a hefty insurance settlement, and soon the surviving characters are scrambling over the money. Enter Police Detective Rita Pompano (Ellen DeGeneres), who has seen too much in her time on the force to not develop a deep cynicism about the people she protects -- or to not be tempted to get in on the payday herself. Goodbye Lover was directed by Roland Joffé, in something of a departure from his best-known work in high-minded dramas such as The Killing Fields and The Mission. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Patricia Arquette, Dermot Mulroney, (more)
Some people just shouldn't have children, and this offbeat thriller shows why. Jack (Bruce Greenwood) and Ann (Daryl Hannah) are a married couple whose lives seems nearly perfect, and they couldn't be happier when, after months of trying, Ann discovers that she's going to have a baby. Jack is understandably distraught when Ann is kidnapped, and he's later told that she's been killed. Actually, the truth is considerably more disturbing -- a psychotic doctor (Vincent Gallo) and his wife (Jennifer Tilly) want a child but have been unable to conceive, so they kidnap the pregnant Ann and attempt to falsify her death, intending to keep her until her child is born, and then raise the baby as their own. Hide and Seek was also released under the title Cord. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Daryl Hannah, Jennifer Tilly, (more)
- 2007
Oscar Wilde's Salome is given a new contemporary interpretation in this independent drama from director Erick Ifergan. Sally (Nina Brosh) is a young woman who lonely and emotionally isolated, despite her beauty. When she isn't busy looking after her ailing mother (Louise Fletcher), Sally works as a hair stylist in a salon along the seedy side of Hollywood Boulevard. One day Sally encounters Johnny (Vincent Gallo), a street preacher who spends his days talking to passers-by and handing out leaflets in which he testifies to his belief in God's love. Sally is drawn to Johnny and the gentle passion of his message, and she attempts to seduce him. While Johnny is drawn to her, in time he decides that his calling to the Lord is more important than a physical relationship with Sally and while she tries to follow in his spiritual path, ultimately he rejects her. Sally, however, refuses to allow Johnny to ignore her need for him. Also known as Hollywood Salome, most of Johnny 316 was shot in 1998, but the film was not completed until 2006. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vincent Gallo, Nina Brosh, (more)
Mika Kaurismaki directed this British-French-Finnish romantic comedy adapted from Richard Rayner's autobiographical novel about a series of Hollywood misadventures. Vacationing in the North of England, aspiring Los Angeles actress Barbara (Vinessa Shaw) stops briefly in a village where she meets town undertaker and obit writer Richard (David Tennant) -- who just can't stop thinking about her. Flying to California, Richard arrives at the Japanese restaurant where Barbara is a waitress, and a relationship begins -- while Richard learns about Hollywood at the hands of various hustlers and agents. Shown at the 1998 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi
- Starring:
- David Tennant, Vinessa Shaw, (more)
A New York pickpocket begins to reexamine his shady career path after learning he will soon become a father. Bobby (Peter Facinelli) has always been the kind of thief who can lift your wallet while looking you in the eyes. Three months ago he had a one-night-stand with a beautiful woman (Jamie Alexander). But that brief encounter leads to an unexpected complication when the woman tracks Bobby down and reveals that she's pregnant. Now, as the police close in on Bobby, the expectant father prepares to make the most important decision of his life. Michael Madsen, Vincent Gallo, and William Forsythe co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Peter Facinelli, Jaimie Alexander, (more)
A man who hears voices in his head discovers he's not crazy, but something far worse is going on in this animated sci-fi drama from director Tarik Saleh. It's the year 2024, and the global oil supply ha finally bottomed out; poverty is widespread, and with automobiles no longer practical, a system of underground trains links most of the cities of Europe. Roger Olafsson (voice of Vincent Gallo) is a low-level office worker who spends his days toiling away in a telephone center and his night cooped up in a tiny flat. One day, Roger begins hearing a voice in his head; the voice tells Roger that it is his conscience, and that he should take a chance and approach Nina (voice of Juliette Lewis), a beautiful woman he's seen while riding the train. Roger decides to take the voice's advice, but it turns out that he's actually been hearing messages from Stefan (voice of Alexander Skarsgard), a functionary of the all-powerful Trexx Corporation, and he's not trying to start a romance by pairing Roger and Nina, but tie the unsuspecting telephone worker into a plot involving a gang of terrorists. Also featuring the voice talents of Udo Kier and Stellan Skarsgard, Metropia was screened as part of the "Critics' Week" program at the 2009 Venice International Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vincent Gallo, Juliette Lewis, (more)
When a Russian anthropologist disappears beneath the city of Moscow, the rescue team assigned the task of tracking him down makes a most unusual discovery in this subterranean thriller starring Vincent Gallo and Val Kilmer. Deep beneath the city of Moscow dwells a group of people who have grown tired of life on the surface. They exist in a complex, multilevel system of caves and catacombs. When a rescue team descends beneath the city in search of a missing anthropologist, they are shocked to discover the underground city, and come face to face with the man who serves as their leader (Kilmer). ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vincent Gallo, Val Kilmer, (more)
Nenette (Alice Houri) is a 14-year-old girl with an attitude problem who runs away from her boarding school only to knock on the door of her older brother Boni (Gregoire Colin). Boni has his own problems most of which center around an erotic fixation with the baker's sexy wife (Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi). He is very reluctant to take Nenette in. Then he finds out she is pregnant. As their relationship grows and adjusts, each begins to understand what maturity it takes to bring a new life into the world. Claire Denis, best known for her film Chocolat, directed. This French film won top honors at the 1996 Locarno Film Festival. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Grégoire Colin, Alice Houri, (more)
Three likable losers attempt "a momentary shift in lifestyle" by becoming part-time thieves in this comedy. Russ (Vincent Gallo) is living with his family, who don't get along especially well, and he fools around with the teenage girl who lives next door. Jerry (Adam Trese) is married to Betty (Linda Gay Hamilton), who -- unlike her husband -- has a job and wants to keep it, even if that means having an affair with her boss. And Sid (William Forsythe) has a soft spot for dogs, which helped derail his plans for a taxi service for senior citizens. All three guys are out of work and need quick money; Russ comes up with a plan to rob a jewelry store, but things go haywire when they accidentally break into a bakery instead, though they at least make off with a large supply of doughnuts. Despite their initial failure as criminals, the would-be thieves raise their sights and plan to knock over an armored car, but they soon discover just how far out of their league they really are. Palookaville was based on a series of short stories by Italian writer Italo Calvino. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- William Forsythe, Vincent Gallo, (more)
- 2010
Vincent Gallo directed, wrote, produced, edited, and scored this evocative independent drama of the unusual relationship between two troubled souls. Mallory (Delfine Bafort) is a beautiful woman who had learned she has only a short time to live, and wants to find someone who can help her make the transition from life to death. Mallory approaches Kevin (Vincent Gallo), who makes his living as a killer for hire, and asks him to look after her remains from the time of her death to her cremation and the scattering of her ashes. Kevin agrees, and takes a job at a funeral home to better understand the process, but as this assignment forces him to look upon his relationship with mortality in a new way, he also ponders his interaction with Mallory and other women in his life. Promises Written In Water was an official selection at the 2010 Venice Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- 2004
- Add Rated R: Republicans in Hollywood to Queue Add Rated R: Republicans in Hollywood to top of Queue
Attmpeting to shatter the image of Hollywood as a liberal haven, filmmaker Jesse Moss profiles a number of Red-Staters who call La-La Land home in this 2004 Documentary. Among the right-leaning interviewees are comedian Drew Carey, gameshow hosts Pat Sajak and Ben Stein, sitcom star Patricia Heaton, and controversial actor/director Vincent Gallo. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi
An international party of astronauts crash lands on Mars. Bummer. Since rescue is, oh, 26 months away, and they only have air, food, and water for a few days, the astronauts must come to grips with the idea of dying slow and painful deaths. The captain (María Lidón) and two others explore the planet, only to make an awesome discovery. Meanwhile, Baglioni (Vincent Gallo) tries to convince the very-Catholic Jenny (Maria de Medeiros) to have sex before dying. ~ Buzz McClain, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vincent Gallo, Maria de Medeiros, (more)
On the heels of the self-financed, modestly budgeted 2007 drama Youth Without Youth -- his first directorial outing after a ten-year hiatus -- filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola remains situated in the director's chair for this semi-autobiographical family drama concerning an artistic family of immigrants whose fierce rivalries span several generations. Vincent Gallo stars with newcomer Alden Ehrenreich, with Carmen Maura, Maribel Verdú, and Alden Ehrenreich rounding out the cast. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vincent Gallo, Alden Ehrenreich, (more)
- 2003
- NR
Actor and musician Vincent Gallo takes on the role of writer, director, editor, cinematographer, and star with his second filmmaking effort, The Brown Bunny. Motorcycle racer Bud Clay (Gallo) drives his van across the country in search of his lost love, Daisy (Chloë Sevigny). He stops at her parents' house and sees the brown bunny she left behind. Along the rest of the way, he stops for gas, rides his bike, and makes out with a woman at a roadside rest area (Cheryl Tiegs). He meets up with Daisy when he finally arrives in Los Angeles, leading to the revelatory conclusion in his hotel room. The Brown Bunny premiered in competition at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival in a working cut of 119 minutes that was widely panned; a 93 minute final edit was shown at subsequent festivals and premiered in the United States in the summer of 2004. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Vincent Gallo, Chloë Sevigny, (more)
Cult figure Abel Ferrara directed this dark, emotional tale of life among the criminal underworld, set in the late 1930s. The Tempio Brothers -- Ray (Christopher Walken), Chez (Chris Penn), and Johnny (Vincent Gallo) -- work with the mob; Ray is the cool and methodical type, Chez is an angry man who tends to fly off the handle, and Johnny is the odd man out, whose work with labor unions has given him a strong interest in socialism. When Johnny is murdered by rival mobster Gaspare (Benicio del Toro), it has a profound effect on his brothers. Ray is determined to seek revenge, even though his wife Jeanette (Anabella Sciorra), realizing a reprisal will only lead to more violence, begs him to reconsider, while Chez begins losing his tenuous grip on reality, causing no small discomfort for his wife Clara (Isabella Rossellini). In time, both brothers are forced to deal with the ugly repercussions of their family's long-standing criminal lifestyle. Chris Penn's performance as Chez earned him the "Best Actor" trophy at the 1996 Venice Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
- Starring:
- Christopher Walken, Chris Penn, (more)
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