L'heure du crime

The script of this movie never shows why or how a seemingly decent, almost boring small-town cop is transformed into a scheming bad-ass who plans not only murder, but to pin the blame for it on a fellow officer. Love is just not enough, especially when the object of it, Camelia Kath, is so woefully lacking in the femme fatale department. Then there is Keifer, who is excellent, except we don't get to see much of him. A lot could have been done with this character, but instead we get large dollops of the poisonous relationship between two quite unattractive people (Kath and her nasty, clichéd, property tycoon husband). Hitchcock could probably have pulled off a denouement in sand dunes on an overcast day but probably not many others could. However, I thoroughly enjoyed Joe Don Baker's performance as the old sheriff.

This one could have been better. The scenario works, the good cop not being totally good and the bad guy not entirely bad. Beau Bridges does a reliable job and Kiefer Sutherland even works to do a role out of the ordinary kiefer. However, the director ruins everything. The result is boring beyond limits. All the suspense comes from the screenplay and the final is totally flat. As a matter of fact, I have never seen a movie where screenplay and direction differ in quality as clearly as in this one.

Killing Time treads familiar ground in the thriller genre, offering a serviceable but unremarkable viewing experience.

Despite the committed performances of its cast, the film struggles to transcend its formulaic plot and lacks the ingenuity needed to captivate audiences.

While there are fleeting moments of suspense, they're often overshadowed by predictable twists and clichéd tropes.

Watching Early Sutherland is the highlight of the movie, even though his performance is a little understated.

Ultimately, Killing Time may provide mild entertainment for those seeking a straightforward thriller, but it fails to leave a lasting impression or offer anything new to the genre :)

Kiefer Sutherland is an unknown killer, who comes to a peaceful coastal town pretending to be the new deputy sheriff. He starts working with Sam Wayburn (the expressionless Beau Bridges) and Carl Cunningham (Joe Don Baker), who is going to retire. Sam is in love with his high school sweetheart Laura Winslow (Camelia Kath), who is married with a powerful and wealth man, Jake Winslow (Wayne Rogers). Sam and Laura decides to kill Jake and put the blame on the new comer, but things will not work as planned. This movie is not totally bad, although full of clichés and very predictable. The situations are easily resolved and the plot is neither moralist nor amoral: it is shallow. Maybe in the hands of the Cohen brothers or other good director, it could be a great movie. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Tempo de Vingança" ("Time of Revenge")

we bought this movie, as a second-hand copy, and first thing to strike us, was that we didn't have to turn up the sound, and talking bout sound, this score is one of the best we have heard, if score means coordinatiniton with the scenes in motion. the scenes too were artistically cut, to the score. we strongly recommend this copy to be copied by serious distributors for the future. unlike recent releases like matrix and others one can actually see and mostly hear this movie on and on. the screenplay is predictable, and a copy of an old perry mason episode. reference: new world international, danish copy by filmlab no 7736.