Viaggio senza ritorno

i could count the other movies this flick ripped off as it went along, which was really interesting. but that was about all that was interesting. this didn't really keep my attention, perhaps because i really had seen it all before. keifer sutherland is pretty believable as a psychotic criminal, but the cliche of that character keeps me from really getting into it.

Raymond Lembecke (Vincent Gallo) just got out of prison. His girlfriend is Addy Monroe (Kim Dickens). Curtis Freley (Kiefer Sutherland) is a psychopath. Together with Marcus Weans (Mykelti Williamson), the four rob a drug dealer of his drugs. The problem is that a cop was working undercover there, and everybody was killed. Now on the run, they carjack an RV with a couple on board (Kevin Pollak, Grace Phillips).

This is a Kiefer's first time directing effort for a full length film. It has it's moments but there isn't anything special and it doesn't flow. The story jerks from one thing to another. Some of it doesn't really make sense. For example when they leave the RV and take the pickup, they left the pickup driver and kept the RV couple. They must know that if they leave the pickup driver, the cops would zero in on the pickup immediately. This was stupid and added nothing to the story. Kiefer should have stayed with the RV in the story.

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.

Much-maligned Keifer Sutherland's career has taken a relative nose-dive since the heady days of his Brat-pack success in Lost Boys and Young Guns. But, here he proves to be a surprise hit behind the camera, co-starring in and directing this well paced and exciting outlaw drama. Brad Mirman's plot keeps the action moving, presents twists at every corner and establishes engaging characters. The real key is both Sutherland's own frenetic performance, his directing style and the chemistry between Kim Dickens and the superb Vincent Gallo. A rare treat, with characters you can root for from the very start. Has a great little soundtrack too!

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.