Slow Burn

=== NO SPOILERS ==> Don't ya love movies that blatantly warn you how bad they are by their title? Here's a prime example. Oh... My... GAWD! It goes on, and on, and on, AND NOTHING HAPPENS! You feel like you're the one lost out in the desert. I only watched this for Spader and Driver. Spader is almost unrecognizable which is the only interesting thing about this movie. Unbelievably, this thing cost (according to IMDB) $10 million to make? So the backers got feel the burn as well.

The reason I rented this film was because it featured James Spader. However, after watching it I would say Mr. Brolins performance deserves far more kudos. Overall, the film was so-so. The plot was a tad shaky and not layered out very well. Minnie Driver did a good job of looking haggard and perplexed but her role did not require much else. Spader was fine but his accent drove me mad. It was a funky cross between a man with a frog in his throat and a fellow from New Jersey. Despite the lackluster pace of the film I enjoyed every minute that featured Duster(Brolin). He played his character with depth and was convincing. I really liked that he had a special protection feeling for the bird, that was sweet. Overall though, this film was pretty shoddy and could have been a way better piece than it was.

The plot is not what brings your focus to bear with this film - it is the absolutely horrible acting performances of the players. James Spader's agent should spend significant resources to pass the rumour that he didn't have a part in this film (he's practically unrecognizable anyway); Minnie Driver's contribution is in the body part only league; and Josh Brolin should not give up his day job. In particular, the language accents taken on by Driver & Brolin are forced, stereotypical, and false. In fact, for me, the disastrous lack of some kind of sanity in the plotline coupled with loser performances of Driver and Brolin made the desert scenes the most interesting part of the film. Spader is a fine actor who just doesn't need this kind of drivel on his record. Scale of 0-10: a 2 for Spader and the desert scenes.

Minnie Driver plays a woman looking for diamonds lost by her ancestors out in the desert, when she stumbles upon two criminals (Spader and Brolin) who have miraculously stumbled upon the diamonds on accident, and who quickly take her captive. Driver has to figure out how to get the diamonds to herself and try to ditch her captors, while a mysterious old friend, Stuart Wilson, watches the events unfold from a distance and narrates Driver's past.

Minnie Driver makes an adequate lead, but it's James Spader who makes this movie. He plays a real goon; a rat-like voice and the only one with a gun. He gets increasingly desperate to escape his purgatory in the middle of nowhere and make the diamonds his. His mentally slow but good-hearted partner in crime, Brolin, and the antics of Driver lead his character. A great performance that kept me hooked, despite reading the other reviews.

Great cinematography to this movie. It's all shot in the desert, and the dry heat is beautifully captured. Ditto for the costumes. Spader and Brolin's bumbling conmen aren't used to the weather, and their faces are chapped and blistered in startlingly realistic fashion.

The movie's biggest problem is Stuart Wilson's bizarre, almost random narration. His character isn't very well set up in the beginning and you spend most of the movie trying to figure out his relevance to the story. It's purpose is a way to wrap up the loose ends, but I would have liked the film more if it had just abandoned the explanation of the past and made instead a character study of this trio.

Overall, I recommend it.

Underrated indy film. Solid story and fascinating characters. Many elements obviously borrowed from forgotten Frank Norris classic, McTeague, first published in 1899. The Norris novel was the basis for 1925 silent classic Greed, directed by Erich von Stroheim. Greed is generally considered one of the best films ever though the nine hour original and witnesses are long gone. With respect to Slow Burn, I enjoyed watching one aspect of human nature, namely greed, play out under the blazing sun.