Past tense

Truly a good film and for noir addicts it is a must see. I see the Twin Peeks comparison and not surprising, one of the writers, wrote for that show (as well as his brother). Not for a casual view, it can quickly become confusing, as shown, almost completely, in flashback style. Nice "tip" to the Wizard of Oz and the attention to detail, is amazing.

First of all, anyone who claims that he or she didn't find this head-scratcher confusing must be the next freakin' Einstein! The plot is maybe more tangled than that of "The Usual Suspects", and there are enough distorted/out-of-chronological order events, half-remembered/repeated/altered lines and "was-it-all-a-dream-or-was-it-real?" tricks to baffle even the most avid mystery fan. Generally, movies with multiple twists and turns can be great fun, but this one is so contrived that it tried my patience. Besides, I don't understand why Lara Flynn Boyle had to whisper almost all of her lines (to come off as "seductive", perhaps?), or why they would pair her romantically with Scott Glenn, an actor almost 30 years older than her. (**)

OK, so you have to think as you watch - and after - but this film is a gem - and it hangs together even though it seems at times to be an incarnation of Twin Peaks - and THAT is NOT a bad thing! (There's even a Twin Peaks cast member aboard!) This is an excellent Psycho-Drama that will keep most theorizing right up to, through and past the end. Intelligent Film Noir, superbly cast and scripted - for those who like their Films Dark.

Former cop Gene Ralston (Scott Glenn) is haunted by confusion and is writing a hard-boiled crime novel about his new sexy neighbor (Lara Flynn Boyle). He has a sexual fling with her and a woman turns up dead there. More confusion arises. He fears evidence is piling up against him as his partner Larry Talbert (Anthony LaPaglia) investigates. Suddenly, there is a different woman living in that house and the murder never happened.

This starts as a neo-noir. It pushes very hard but that's acceptable. The problem starts with the confusing bits and pieces. It's intriguing when it first begins but soon it becomes tiresome. With all the jumbled pieces, the progression feels rather random. The pieces are all there. The fit is up in the air. At least, it's trying to do something.

The movie "past tense" is rated with an "8" here. UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!! I watched the film for about 1 hour, then i turned it of, it was that bad. Very confusing with a lot of flashbacks. One moment the guy seemed to be in very good shape, the next he's in a coma in the hospital. And it started so well, i mean, the 2 main-actors hitting the sack after just 5 minutes, that's a new record for sure,guys.