The Salton Sea
by D.J. Caruso
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Adam Goldberg, Doug Hutchison, Luis Guzmán, Val Kilmer, Vincent D'OnofrioDirector: D.J. Caruso
Brand: Warner Brothers
Cinematographer: Amir M. Mokri
Producer: Butch Robinson
Producer: Eriq La Salle
Producer: Frank Darabont
Producer: Jim Behnke
Producer: Ken Aguado
Writer: Tony Gayton
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 103 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-09-10
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Model: 18882
Studio: Warner Home Video
Movie Reviews of The Salton Sea
Movie Review: Losing and Finding A Man
Summary: 5 Stars
Meet Danny Parker, a "tweaker". Tweakers are meth users who spend their lives on the highest of highs, and Danny seems to fit in comfortably with his fellow druggies. But when Danny returns to his small apartment, he pulls down a secret case from his closet and puts on the clothes he finds in it. And there's a trumpet in there, too, that he plays beautifully. Danny is now Tom Van Allen. Wait. Is that right? Or is it the other way around? And why does this guy seem to have two distinctive personalities?
As the story of Danny/Tom unravels, we get to see him meeting with two detectives who use him as a snitch. But as the film continues its seemingly normal route, we suddenly begin to see some side-roads from Danny's life. His wife was killed during a supposed turf war between drug dealers (she just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time), and Danny had to watch helplessly as she was executed; a scene that Danny plays over and over again in his mind and dreams. So why has Danny become a meth user when it was a portion of this lifestyle that caused his wife's death?
Revenge perhaps?
Although sounding cliche-ish (i.e., murdered wife's husband seeks retribution for her death), nothing about this film is a cliche. The way the story slowly comes into focus is quite stunning. And Val Kilmer's performance is his best since Doc Holiday in "Tombstone".
The viewer knows nothing about Danny's past initially, nor why his wife was killed, but as that thread of the story gets woven into the plot, another thread suddenly appears ...and then another, and another, and another. Amazing.
The all-star cast also adds weight to the film as we get to see Vincent D'Onofrio (Full Metal Jacket) play Pooh Bear, a dealer who's done so much meth that he no longer has a nose and who's mind is so far gone that he likes to reenact the assassination of JFK using pigeons strapped into radio controlled toy cars. And Meat Loaf even makes a brief appearance! I hadn't seen him in years! I used to love his music!
This film is definitely something for film noir fans to watch. It seems like a dark subject and, to some extent, it is. But not completely.
Can Danny/Tom become one man again? Or, perhaps, become an entirely new man? Or will he burn in the flames of his own making? You've gotta watch this and find out.
Summary of The Salton Sea
In the Imperial Valley of Southern California there is a little known body of water 226 feet below sea level, one of the lowest points in the United States. As there is no outlet from this sea, water is being removed only by evaporation, which results in a salinity level more than 25 percent higher than the Pacific Ocean. There is an eerie stillness to this vast sea, and a peculiar density to the water. This lake is the Salton Sea. Set against this remote and mysterious landscape, an unexpected and brutal crime leaves an innocent woman, caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, dead at the hands of masked gunmen. Her husband's life is left in ruins, his every waking moment haunted by the recurring imagery of the murder he witnessed, but was powerless to prevent. "The Salton Sea" is a character-driven crime thriller about an unlikely hero entangled in a web of deceit and treachery. Full of unexpected twists and turns, this is a compelling and emotionally-charged story about loss and recovery set to the lonely resonant tones of jazz great Miles Davis' horn. Danny Parker (VAL KILMER) is a man in search of redemption, consumed by a sense of loneliness and alienation. Following the death of his wife (CHANDRA WEST), he is set adrift in a seedy underworld inhabited by an eclectic, and often comical, cast of characters united principally by their choice of drug: crystal methamphetamine. An accomplished jazz musician, Danny is now a low-life "tweaker" in Los Angeles who leads us through a frenzied maze, one from which he must emerge before his tenuous grip on reality snaps for good. In a bold attempt Danny secretly hatches a plan to serve as middle-man in a lucrative drug deal. With the help of his friend Jimmy "The Finn" (PETER SARSGAARD), Danny is introduced to Pooh-Bear (VINCENT D'ONOFRIO), a methamphetamine baron with a penchant for sadistic recreational games, who seals the deal. But in this mad world, nothing - most of all Danny - is what it seems.In the real world, drug use is unimaginably boring to watch--but it inspires spectacular visuals in movies like Trainspotting and Drugstore Cowboy. To this list add The Salton Sea, a moody thriller starring Val Kilmer as a musician who goes undercover into the world of speed freaks to find the men who killed his wife. Though that plot summary may sound trite, creative direction, strong performances, and a solid script that shifts to and fro in time make The Salton Sea worth a look. Kilmer has an erratic track record but he's always an intriguing on-screen presence; Vincent D'Onofrio has a field day playing a noseless speed dealer called Pooh Bear. The cast is full of excellent character actors, including Anthony LaPaglia (Lantana), Peter Sarsgaard (Boys Don't Cry), B.D. Wong (Jurassic Park), Deborah Kara Unger (Crash), Adam Goldberg (Saving Private Ryan), and Luis Guzman (The Limey). --Bret Fetzer
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