The Salton Sea (2002)

Directed by D.J. Caruso
Written by Tony Gayton
Starring Val Kilmer, Vincent D'Onofrio, Doug Hutchison and Peter Sarsgaard

After his wife is murdered, a man drifts into a world populated by thugs and speed junkies. He struggles to identify with both his past life and his new one, where danger lurks at every corner.

A perfect combination with equal parts Scorsese, Guy Ritchie, western and classic noir films, "The Salton Sea" is a dark thriller filled with great performances and writing. It perfectly captures the feel of those classic private detective movies, flipping it around and telling it from a junky/informant's perspective.

The most notable performance in this movie is hands down Vincent D'Onofrio as "Pooh-Bear". One thing that he continually proves is his ability to be intimidating and comedic simultaneously. As the nose-less, drug cooking murderer, he casts a shadow of unease and commands the screen with every scene. And just when you think he's going to go completely dark, he'll do something that changes the mode of the scene on a dime.

One thing that I couldn't take seriously was the relationship between Val Kilmer and Peter Sarsgaard's character. It reminded me much of the Frodo/Sam relationship from "The Lord of the Rings". There was this unintentional "will they, won't they" tension throughout. Somewhat ending with the Frodo character being surrounded the fiery death of Mordor.

"I'm your Sam!"

Overall, this was a decent, enjoyable movie. It's not without it's faults, but few movies are. But the noir-style writing, filming and editing of this film make it a unique modernization of a once lost genre. In that sense, it is a beautiful homage to an entire decade of cinema.

My Rating: 7/10