The Salton Sea (2002)

Wonderful character development!

Captivating movie !

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Blistering performances.

In this movie's opening scene, a man surrounded by money, photos and flames sits on the floor of a small room playing his trumpet. What's most noticeable is the deeply melancholic sound of his music and his total lack of concern about the obvious danger he's in. Both of these things are important pointers to his state of mind as he begins to describe the events that led him to this point in his life. His story of love, loss, revenge and redemption features a variety of low-life characters, a certain amount of brutality and many moments of dark humour. The action takes place in the squalid surroundings inhabited by drug addicts, dealers and corrupt cops where life is cheap and the atmosphere's always threatening.Speed freak Danny Parker (Val Kilmer) is a man with an identity issue. He used to be a happily married jazz musician who dressed conventionally and was known as Tom Van Allen. His life changed dramatically when, during an unpredictable incident, his wife was shot dead and he was left devastated, heartbroken and consumed with guilt about his inability to prevent what happened. Having used drugs to numb his pain, he then morphed into the heavily tattooed character who became known to his fellow addicts as Danny and his life became a series of binges where he got high followed by periods where he involved himself in various drug deals to fund his habit.Danny had also been recruited by a couple of undercover cops to help them catch drug dealers. This work was dangerous and he knew that one group in particular called the "Mexicali Boys" were out to kill him for his part in the successful arrest of their leader. A meeting that he has with a drug dealer who carries a spear-gun proves to be absolutely terrifying and he's also fortunate to survive another deal with a sadist called Pooh Bear (Vincent D'Onofrio) who specialises in torture as well as trading in crystal methedrine. Surprisingly, despite his dangerous and destructive lifestyle, Danny still manages to enjoy reasonably normal friendships with the simple but good-natured Jimmy the Finn (Peter Sarsgaard) and his neighbour Colette (Deborah Kara Unger) whose life is miserable because she regularly gets beaten by her abusive boyfriend Quincy (Luis Guzman).All is not entirely as it seems however, because it gradually becomes clear that Danny's involvement in the "tweaker" subculture is not simply to ease his pain but more importantly to avenge the death of his wife.For a movie that appears to be so unappealing in many ways, it's a pleasant surprise to find that "The Salton Sea" actually boasts a good story, some wonderful cinematography and a way of delivering its narrative that's quite novel. With its catalogue of eccentric characters and exemplary performances, this is a movie that certainly delivers a lot more than it promises.

The Salton Sea is utterly fantastic. It's amazing it took me this long to watch it, it's an instant classic.What makes the movie so fantastic is the amount of content and the variety of said content that is displayed. It's gritty, yet intellectual. Slow, yet paced perfectly. The story unravels slowly, yet the story happens to fast. I think it's safe to say, that the complexity of this movie can not be understated. What you are getting here is the total package. From the gorgeous delivery and beautiful cinematography, to the intricate details from the culmination of the plot. The thought engrossing script, and the perfectly acted epic story tells the tale of redemption, revenge, heartbreak, sorrow, loss, and glory. Val Kilmer delivers his best roll of his entire life. This movie will be relevant for the next 100 years. Do yourself a favor, and add this to your must watch list.

I saw a poster to this movie a long time ago and found it sort of interesting but never seen the trailer in theaters although I tend to go to the movies a lot back than. Especially with it's tagline, which didn't help get a understanding of what this movie is about. But from the beginning scene it clearly shows this movie is about tweekers. And is mainly focused on one tweeker Danny Parker/Tom Van Allen(Val Kilmer) who has a double lifestyle. I was actually quite shocked with the direction this movie went since I thought it would be a very serious movie, but the cinematography didn't seem all that serious. In fact this movie has some comedic elements in it. Besides the unexpected direction and besides the movie being all over the place at times, it does get put together a bit later on. And after it was finished I actually liked this movie, not a great film like some people claim it to be but I still liked it, especially the style of this, well sort of. And especially how the plot comes together and how it all fits together. Val Kilmer did a good job of playing the witty tweeker in this and his performance was enjoyable to watch. This is a unpredictable movie with some good elements in it that revolve around drugs and other stuff which I won't be giving away. I am glad I took the time to watch this film and it won't disappoint.7.4/10

The writer of The Salton Sea, Tony Gayton, said that he didn't intend for his script to be made into the film, but wrote it out as an experiment, a piece that he could show off to Hollywood execs so that he could get other writing jobs (this is actually a much more common occurrence in getting writing jobs than you'd think). When the studio decided to make the script into a film, I wonder now seeing the film if its director DJ Caruso intended the same as his writer when he was making it. This is a film for a select bunch of viewers, and perhaps not even them at all.Who is the audience for The Salton Sea? Most likely that cultish group of movie-goers that loves trippy drug movies with black humor (its visual style screams out at times LOOK AT ME, with a musical track that accompanies it). But it's also got a story like a film-noir, or even that of a crime story off of nighttime network TV, where a guy goes undercover... and is going undercover even deeper again for another organization, all in the memory of his late wife. It's this clash that makes Salton Sea captivating, and also, at times, not very likable as a movie. It looks like it's cribbed from other movies, better ones (Trainspotting as one example, The Kind of New York as another), and morphed into its own thing.For the gaps in logic that the film has, and it definitely has a few (for one thing, when it's revealed how Kilmer's wife really died, it's kind of stupid why they were even where they were in the first place - and also, later on in the film, what the twisted relationship is between Kilmer and the cops he rats to on his life in the meth game), the film entertains and engages with its bizarre humor and even some of its predictable noirish elements (for example Deborah Kara Unger's subplot with the abusive husband). Caruso wants this to be a dark film with some surreal touches- something he makes us aware of in the first scene as trumpet player Daniel Parker (or is it Tommy Van Allen) plays on in the midst of a fire around him- and as long as he doesn't let things slip too far into the expected, it fares well.Supporting actors help out a great deal in ensembles, and it's here that an actor like Vincent D'Onofrio can go to town. He plays the no-nosed drug dealer Pooh-bear (named after poor Winnie sticking his nose into too much honey), and is so bonkers as he tries to outdo anything in Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas. Arguably, he goes too far with it, especially with his character's penchant for having an actual badger eating a man's genitals. But it works as a crazy buffer in the midst of other plot lines that take themselves almost too seriously (the undercover plot) or not really at all (the Meth buddies plot to steal Bob Hope's stool, which is meant to played for laughs but felt kind of stale ala Tarantino). Others who stand out include Stellan Sarsgaard as Kilmer's Meth-buddie, and BD Wong who for most of the film plays a character so unlike we've seen him play on Oz or Law & Order.And as for Kilmer... he does alright. Nothing really great or audacious (he doesn't shoot for the moon like Jim Morrison) and nothing to be ashamed of. His narration either is very good or poor, usually based on the script. His mournful look resonates at first, but he does better at playing stoned in front of the cops or trying to stay on edge like in front of the bugged-out dealer with the woman trapped under his bed. And as more quirky and comic-book characters and twists come out of the woodwork, he holds his own and makes the film watchable, if not too demanding of the viewer.