The Scent of Rain & Lightning

Although I like the mystery genre this time I wasn't completely satisfied. There was just too much going on, back and forth from the present to the past, too many characters, that results in a too confused story to follow. The acting was good though, certainly nothing bad to say about that. The filming was good too. Just too bad it was all that confusing and a also bit slow at times. Why they put this movie in the western genre is also a mystery to me. It's not because it's in Texas and that people wear cowboy hats that it's a western. But the movie is worth a watch, you won't get bored. I won't watch it a second time though, once is enough.

After watching this garbage twice(once with subtitles) I am still in the dark as to "who dun it". What a convoluted bewildering story made all the more so by time shifting and similar looking suspects. 0 stars!! Waste of time.

Scent of Rain and Lightning (an adaptation of the novel by Nancy Pickard) upends expectations at every twisted turn. Anchored by a strong script from RUDDERLESS writers Casey Twenter and Jeff Robison, the film refuses to comply with the usual genre rules. Styled as a Western, flirting at the edges of a who-don-it, the film ultimately questions if we can truly know the truths of our personal histories...let alone understand them. Director Blake Robbins's extreme close-ups create a feeling of confusion and claustrophobia while a stellar cast hints at unseen histories. Watch for Maggie Grace's enigmatic portrayal of the headstrong, paradoxical Laurie.

This is the kind of film that sticks with you, and makes you want to watch again. The story isn't told in a traditional way, which can make it feel unsettling and even disorienting at times, but in an interesting and engaging way.

The movie stinks. I can't stand the back and forth business with no explanation as to what is going on. There were constant flashbacks to the past like we are supposed to know who all the characters are. It started at the beginning and we hadn't even gotten to know the present characters so that makes it frustrating and confusing. The entire movie goes back and forth. The lead character's trying to figure out who murdered her parents years ago but she never comes to a conclusion; she seems to give up altogether towards the end. What was the point? We never find out 'who done it!" I can't stand movies that don't have a conclusion.

Another thing I didn't like is the filming technique "shaky-camera syndrome" and it was so random. Too bad no one on the movie making staff had the guts to tell the director he did a terrible job of trying to tell a story and that he omitted 99% of the answers.