July 19, 2011

Photo Coverage & Recap: Rick Faugno & Virgin Alexander Shine at Las Vegas Film Festival with ‘Best Feature Film’ Award!

July 19th, 2011

Photo Credits: Kathy Johnstone & JBB Tech Half

On Sunday afternoon, July 17, “Virgin Alexander,” a film starring JERSEY BOYS Vegas’ Frankie Valli, Rick Faugno, and co-written and co-directed by Charlotte Barrett and Sean Fallon, premiered at the Las Vegas Film Festival (LVFF) at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel and Casino.

We were on hand with fellow JERSEY BOYS fans, Rick’s castmates, and a crowd of film aficionados to watch the independent film comedy that has been winning awards at a number of film festivals around the country. And, after seeing the film, we now know why!

Rick Faugno stars as Alexander Mann, a 26-year-old, uptight, scrap hauler who dreams of playing piano. His plans of studying music come to a halt when his grandfather transfers his debt-ridden home into Alexander’s name. Now, he is facing eviction.

We soon meet Bim Norse, a small town crook who thinks he’s an entrepreneur, played very convincingly by Bronson Pincho. He runs a failing fast food restaurant to cover his illegal activities. When he reneges on a promise to help one of his young employees, Ruby, pay for college, she throws a basket of sizzling hot French fries in his face. To avoid Bim’s wrath, Ruby hides in a dumpster where she meets Alexander. Both in need of quick cash, Ruby wants to team up with Alexander so that they can both reach their goals.

Alexander is quickly in over his head. He has angered a fast food entrepreneur who is threatening violence and the bank is threatening him with eviction. As all this is taking place around him, Alexander, who is a virgin, is falling in love with Ruby, who is a prostitute. As Ruby, Paige Howard makes a lasting impression as a tough young woman with college dreams. After realizing they both need some fast cash, Ruby decides they should go into business together. More specifically, she’s turning Alexander’s home into a brothel!

As Alexander, Rick shines as the rather anxious, shy young man who’s definitely uncomfortable around people. This role is such a departure from the struggling young, driven singer, turned pop superstar Frankie Valli that Rick has been playing so superbly for over three years. As Alexander, Rick is almost like a sad clown, whose actions and reactions to what was going around him are downright hilarious!

Throughout the movie, it was obvious that the audience was rooting for the shy, ill-at-ease Alexander. With the constant reminders of foreclosures, student loans, and missed dreams in today’s headlines, the film’s humorous take on what was going on in Alexander’s tumultuous journey made it an enjoyable ride for the audience!

Another fun surprise in “Virgin Alexander” was seeing former JERSEY BOYS cast member (and Rick’s wife!) Joyce Chittick in her role as “Female Professor”!

After enjoying the movie so much on Sunday, we weren’t surprised to find out that “Virgin Alexander” came home with the “Best Feature Film” Award at this year’s Las Vegas Film Festival!

Kudos to Rick Faugno, co-directors/co-writers Charlotte Barrett and Sean Fallon, and the entire “Virgin Alexander” stellar cast on this terrific independent film!

Visit VirginAlexander.com for more details on this great film and for a preview, check out the trailer!

4 Comments »

  1. Great review, Susie. The movie was well paced and you surely didn’t know where it was going, so it kept you interested to see what happens next. For a low budget indy film, I thought it was well written and produced. Congratulations to Rick and everyone involved. Very glad they won best feature film.

    Comment by Linda — July 20, 2011 @ 1:01 am

  2. Thanks, Linda! You’re so right about how the film kept us wondering what would happen next and the character development was so interesting!

    Comment by Susie — July 20, 2011 @ 8:38 am

  3. Susie, I’m with Linda…we know it would be a winner. It was well done (better than some big budget film). It was nice seeing everyone too. Congrats to Rick, Joyce and the whole cast…it was excellent.

    Comment by Kathy Johnstone — July 20, 2011 @ 9:37 pm

  4. Look forward to seeing this when it goes into wide distribution. Congrats to Rick, et al!!

    Comment by Pamela — July 21, 2011 @ 5:03 pm

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