Truth or Consequences, N.M.

Neat little thriller about a group of ex cons who while ripping off a drug dealer accidentally kill an undercover cop, forcing them to take to the road. They head for Las Vegas to sell the stolen drugs taking along with them a couple as hostages as they are pursued by both the cops, and the drug dealers associates, who are not best pleased with what they have done. The film moves at a reasonable pace and the acting is good, especially from leads, Gallo, Williamson and an evil Kiefer Sutherland, who clearly enjoys his role as the psychotic Curtis. It's just a shame that the plot seems to run out of steam for the last 20 or so minutes but it does come together again for an exciting finale. Well worth checking out. Sutherland also directed.

Another heist-gone-wrong movie. It's been done before - criminals are cool etc. However this is still pretty good and thrilling all the way through. It is rarely slow or dull. All the actors are good with Gallo really bringing his character to life and making you feel for him. Sutherland does a good job of directing and even plays the crazy killer well.

The film evens tackles the issue of us viewing these people as cool - not something many do - and challenges us on our admiration of them (even if it is on a basic level).

Yes, you seen it before - but that doesn't mean it's totally unoriginal or not entertaining to watch.

Bonnie and Clyde. Now there was a classic. That movie was as much a classic as a cult movie as a ground-breaker. Over the years, we have seen many different "versions" of this movie, the best one probably being Thelma & Louise (1991). But after seeing Truth Or Consequences, N.M., I'd say this is the movie that resembles the most this masterpiece.

Donald Sutherland. Now there is a great actor. Probably one of the best living actors in today's movie industry. His small roles in A Time To Kill (1996) and JFK (1991) are just as mesmerising as his big roles like in The Assignment (1997). If you were to ask me "Who do you think will be the next Donald Sutherland?", I would have to say "No one". But after seeing Truth Or Consequences, N.M., I'd say Kiefer Sutherland could become as great an actor as his father is.

As for a great director, well, that doesn't seem to be a problem in Hollywood right for many young directors are developing themselves into great ones and many of the older great directors are still around and while not necessarily becoming one of the greatest directors in the industry, Kiefer Sutherland seems to have as much of an acting talent as of a directing talent.

The movie's story seems very simple and in a way it is. A drug deal gone awry leaves about six dead people including five cops and four young people on the run from the law. But as the movie develops, so does the story. Hostages, undercover cop, drug lords, pregnancy, the Mob, and life on the road all mix together into this delightful mixture of love and guns.

In 1967's Bonnie & Clyde, Warren Beatty was a criminal at the beginning of the movie and always wanted to rob and unfortunately killed people. In 1991's Thelma & Louise, the two women had gone on a vacation with no intention to become criminals but unfortunately were dragged into that world by a murder involving a would-be rapist. In Truth Or Consequences, N.M., only Kiefer Sutherland's character starts off as a crazy maniac with the intention of killing people and this is why this movie differs from the two others. What lead these people to be criminals is an internal action, an action caused by Kiefer Sutehrland's character, an action that could have been avoided contrarily to those of Bonnie & Clyde and Thelma & Louise.

Equally good in the movie are Vincent Gallo and Mykelti Williamson. Gallo plays the head of the gang, a man with a conscience who has no desire in killing people and whose only goal is to go down to Mexico with his girlfriend (Kim Dickens)and get married. Williamson has the hardest role of the movie as an undercover drug enforcement agent and must change the way he acts and talks in presence of Vincent Gallo, Kiefer Sutherland, and Kim Dickens. The cast also includes two very small roles, one for Rod Steiger and the other for Martin Sheen who are both in top shape. But the movie belongs to the four young people on the run who act out the movie to perfection.

Somewhat underrated, if derivative, this first time Directorial effort from the slightly off-center Actor, who will, for at least the foreseeable future be associated with the extremely popular TV Series 24, is a not that bad Crime/Road Movie.

There are some glaring ineffectiveness here and there, mostly coming from the badly written Pulpy Dialog. Some of the Pop Culture references and the extended talky Scenes come off as embarrassing rather than insightful. The "Stockholm Syndrome" element is also played out with some unbelievable and forced developments.

But there are some interesting Characters, the least of which is the DEA infiltrator overacted and annoying, that are engaging enough. The Violence is gritty if over stylized, and is attractive Action Movie stuff with guns blazing and squibs squibbing.

Another weakness is the God-Awful Music, from the sappy slow Ballads to the Road Music, it is badly selected and intrusive. Overall though, this delivers enough Gangster stuff to be Entertaining and should have a more accepting approval than it does from Critics and intolerable nit-pickers.

Not a bad effort from Kiefer Sutherland on his directorial debut. This little crime caper is fairly derivative of recent Tarantino films, with the discussion of the quarter looking somewhat out of place, Tarantino could have pulled something like that off with snappier dialogue but it just didn't work. Overall though it's a nice little film with some decent action and some cool lines and a nice black convertible car though as is often the case with these little crime capers the ending is pretty weak and predictable. Vincent Gallo put in another decent performance as did Kim Dickens, who you can see more of in a better film that this, The Zero Effect. Also of note was the incredibly pretty Grace Phillips as Donna, she puts in a good performance as the shocked wife of Raymond. The idea of Raymond sympathising/envying the criminals was an interesting one, though I found the transformation to be less than credible. Overall this was a nice action film and you can do a lot worse.