Bullitt County

Anything buried out there, is meant to stay buried.

"Bullitt County" isn't really an easy film. To be honest, I had to control myself not to give up after half an hour. It wasn't very exciting, so to say. On the contrary. It was painfully slow and meaningless. The story is situated in the 70s as you can see from the colorful printed shirts and the Woodstock-like attributes. A reunion of grown-up school friends who wanted to break the monotonous existence as a responsible citizen. A trip to Kentucky is planned where they're going to recreate a pub crawl past their favorite distilleries. The only person who isn't voluntary participating is Gordie (Mike C. Nelson) who's about to get married. He's being kidnapped, thrown in the suitcase and taken to the destination. Apparently, this is his bachelor party.

It is only when Gordie hears there's a hidden treasure, the "Bullitt Treasure", in these regions, the pace is going up. Apparently, it's a considerable sum of money (profits from illegal moonshining) that the Bullitt family has hidden in the local forests during the Prohibition. At the same time, it turns out that their favorite bar has been taken over and the new owners turned it into a wine bar. So the plan of a boozing trip is pushed aside. Also, Gordie appears to be a recovered alcoholic who has not drunk a drop for 10 years. So nothing prevents them from entering the woods, armed with spades and camping equipment. So they're off on a treasure hunt. Apparently a very cozy venture, which in turn leads to impressions of four aged hippies who, while playing guitar, smoke a few hash cigarettes and consume quite a bit of liquor. Not really fascinating, but there's already this slight feeling that something sinister is coming to the surface. A secret that this close circle of friends has been dragging along for years. And apparently, no one feels the need to bring it up again.

The moment they are invited by a friendly couple to eat something in their cabin, my expectations regarding the film was already low. "Bullitt County" won't be more than a psychological drama in which a cozy getaway leads to emotional outbursts which bring out deeply hidden traumas from the past. And then all of a sudden hell breaks loose. And before I realize it, I am watching a completely different movie. A movie about survival, cheating, blame, and guilt. Slowly it becomes clear that Gordie's emotional backpack gradually got heavier. Not only has he successfully got rid of an alcohol problem. He's also a Vietnam veteran and didn't go through this war completely unscathed. This results in a person plagued by PTSD who can't control himself during confrontations. And then there's an event in the past that weighs the most. It's being revealed through some flashbacks as the film progresses.

Robin (Jenni Melear), Keaton (David McCracken) and Wayne (Napoleon Ryan) were also involved in this incident but apparently processed it. Gordie also blames them for that at a certain moment. The indifference makes him mad. I also noticed that caring about others isn't their strongest side. Who goes on a pub crawl with an ex-alcoholic? What follows is a burst of pent-up frustration that degenerates into a nerve-racking and bloody denouement. Mike C. Nelson plays a terrific role. The way in which Gordie's personality (also thanks to a momentary relapse) changes from a good-natured person with issues into a revenge-taker driven by madness and rage, is simply wonderful to see. A solid piece of acting. The share of Dorothy Lyman and Richard Riehle was short but powerful.

No, "Bullitt County" isn't a memorable movie. And maybe it would have been better to shorten the intro where we meet those four characters. And the number of sudden twists in the story was a bit overwhelming. And have we not seen that one twist in another movie before? Anyway. The film managed to pleasantly surprise me when the second half of the film announced itself. A film about how a pleasant situation can turn quickly and end in a tragedy. "Bullitt County" shows how someone goes through life, marked by guilt feelings and what impact this has on his personality. Despite Gordie's mistakes and aggressive behavior, you still feel compassion for him. In short, a successful low-budget indie. Just the way I like them.

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338. Bullitt County. A pretty cool thriller of the independent film variety. It does have the familiar, four college friends get together for one last... in this case it's one last hiking trip before a member of the group, Gordie, gets married. This trip also includes a hunt for buried Prohibition Era treasure. So off into the woods they go, totally ignoring those pesky No Trespassing signs, poking around where they shouldn't be, is when they meet the owners of the property. Sure they're nice at first until they bring up the subject of buried treasure and well, the poop hits the fan! Will they make it out of the woods alive with treasure? Or will some other buried things come to light? Twisted story, may be on the lower budget type flick but still a good watch! Filmbufftim on FB.

I saw this in the theater and liked it (probably 7 out of 10) but I just rented it and DAMN there are so many cool details I missed the first time! Storyline pieces fit together really well. The performances are super good too.

I'm from Evansville, heard there were some scenes filmed locally and that it was good from relatives of the crew. I went into it knowing it was a thriller. What I did not know was that this movie would be a train wreck. I'm sorry. I tried to enjoy it. But the characters were awful. Awful decisions. The ending.. if you can call it that.. didn't make much sense either. You got my wife and my 20 bucks. Good luck next time I guess. I'll probably pass.

It's a stretch to call this a thriller, but it certainly grips you a little. The movie starts slow, and I mean real sloooow. I was tempted to turn it off a few times in the first 30 minutes. You have a bunch of juvenile-acting hipsters who seem to be goofing around and wasting everybody's time, but you then get the feeling that they have a dark secret hovering over them, which is when things start getting interesting.

The action kind of picks up when they start searching for a treasure which is legend in those parts. Once we reach the psychological part of the movie, that's when the film starts messing with you and you start realizing what you may have missed the entire movie even though it was right in front of you the whole time (starting from the very first scene).

I would recommend checking out this movie, but do not expect a masterpiece. It can be better made, and the suspense scenes can be directed better. The acting is not too bad and the plot is first-class.