Vicious Circle

Vicious Circle (2009)

Directed by Paul Boyd

Starring Paul Rodriguez, Emily Rios, Trevor Wright

This is my debut feature as a writer director. The film is set in modern day Venice and follows the stormy love affair of RJ and Angel, two Latino teenagers. RJ is a chess genius and an artist, he is quiet and reserved. Angel is the opposite, she is confident and takes charge as the singer in a punk band. They both come from single parent broken families; their connection is real and their love affair is a role reversal. Angel makes the first move and takes RJ's virginity.

RJ's nemesis (Fin) a local bully and drug dealer who employs Angel, is his 1/2 brother and its a secret, no one knows. Fin is jealous of RJ's romance with his employee and when the secret is unveiled it breaks apart RJ and Angel throwing RJ into a deadly long awaited conflict with his 1/2 brother.

The film is structured with a fractured timeline; we open with RJ on the run, blood on his face, a gun in his hand, we assume he has killed his girlfriend. It's a mystery that unfolds in parallel with the game of chess. RJ has to make choices that determine his future with each move he makes. The story and characters have a simple mythological structure that is enhanced through RJ's sketchbook which the film travels into as we go through RJ's mind in an animated 2D world. Each person RJ encounters is a chess piece in the game. The film is a tragedy, a love story about sacrifice. Ultimately RJ loses his girlfriend Angel to a terrible accident that could have been avoided.