''Vicious Circle'' is a 2008 drama film written and directed by Paul Boyd and starring Paul Rodriguez Jr.,

Emily Rios Emily Clara Rios (born April 27, 1989) is an American actress and model. She is best known for her role as Andrea Cantillo on the AMC series ''Breaking Bad''. In 2013 she began portraying newspaper reporter Adriana Mendez on the FX series ''The ...

, and Trevor Wright.

Plot

Set on the streets of modern-day

Venice Beach Venice is a neighborhood of the city of Los Angeles within the Westside region of Los Angeles County, California. Venice was founded by Abbot Kinney in 1905 as a seaside resort town. It was an independent city until 1926, when it was annexed by ...

, ''Vicious Circle'' is a tragic punk rock Latino love story; a raw, edgy, teenage '' Romeo and Juliet'' with a murder mystery twist. We first see 18-year-old RJ (skateboard star, Paul Rodriguez Jr.) running through the streets of LA with a blood stained shirt and a gun in his backpack, leaving us to wonder, "What happened?" An artist and skater with a heart of gold, R.J. dreams of moving to New York City to pursue his dream of creating comic books. His hand-made sketchbook demonstrates his unique talent and acts as a portal between fantasy and reality. A strong influence of the game of chess from RJ's incarcerated father permeates his art and life; RJ lives by the rules of the game and knows the repercussions of one bad move. Soon, RJ meets Angel (

), a rebellious singer in a local teenage punk band. Their unexpected story of true love causes the tides to turn in both lives, and RJ reveals a secret that could cost the life of his new love.

Cast

* Paul Rodriguez Jr. as R.J. *

as Angel * Trevor Wright as Fin *

Robert Zepeda The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

as Smiler Sanchez *

Richard Edson Richard Edson (born January 1, 1954) is an American actor and musician. Personal life Edson was born in New Rochelle, New York to a Jewish family. He has one brother, Steven, who resides in the Boston area, and two sisters, Andrea, who resides ...

as John * Idalis DeLeón as Helena *

Perrey Reeves Perrey Reeves (born ) is an American film and television actress. She is best known for her recurring role as Melissa Gold on the television series ''Entourage'' from 2004 to 2011 and Frank the Tank's wife in the 2003 comedy '' Old School''. E ...

as Sgt. Berger *

Cody McMains Cody Arthur McMains (born October 4, 1985) is a former American actor. He is best known for playing Mitch Briggs in ''Not Another Teen Movie'' and Patch in '' Thomas & the Magic Railroad''. He appeared as Patch in '' Thomas & the Magic Railroad' ...

as Alfred *

Clifton Powell Clifton Powell (born March 16, 1956) is an American actor who primarily plays supporting roles in films, such as in ''Ray'' (2004), for which he received an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture nomination. Care ...

as Freddy * Paul Rodriguez Sr. as Professor * Angelyna Martinez as CeCe Sanchez * Drew Osborne as Young Fin *

Mike Diaz Michael Anthony Diaz (born April 15, 1960) is a former professional baseball player. He played all or part of four seasons in Major League Baseball between 1983 and 1988, for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago White Sox. He also play ...

as Sgt. Gomez * Magdaleno "Guic One" Robles Jr as friend of Smiler

Soundtrack

Release

''Vicious Circle'' made its premiere at the 9th Annual New York International Latino Film Festival on July 25, 2008 at the Director's Guild Theatre. The film won Best Picture at 2008 HBO New York International Latino Film Festival. ''Vicious Circle'' also won the Audience Award at the 2008 Orlando International Film Festival and was an Official Selection at the 2009 Downtown Film Festival in Los Angeles. ''Vicious Circle'' signed a distribution deal with Maya Entertainment in 2009.

Awards

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vicious Circle 2008 films 2000s English-language films 2008 drama films American independent films Films set in California Films based on Romeo and Juliet American drama films 2008 independent films 2000s American films