The Salton Sea (2002)

February 12, 2002 (US) • Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller • 103m

Overview

After the murder of his beloved wife, a man in search of redemption is set adrift in a world where nothing is as it seems. On his journey, he befriends slacker Jimmy "The Finn", becomes involved in rescuing his neighbor Colette from her own demons, and gets entangled in a web of deceit full of unexpected twists and turns.

Director

D.J. Caruso

Writer

Tony Gayton

Top Billed

Val Kilmer

Keywords

california dual identity identity detective junkie jazz singer or musician drug scene flashback murder police corruption neo-noir death of wife drug deal methamphetamine

Where to watch

Rent

Buy

Top Billed Cast

Val Kilmer

Tom Van Allen | Danny Parker

Vincent D'Onofrio

Pooh-Bear

Adam Goldberg

Kujo

Luis Guzmán

Quincy

Doug Hutchison

Gus Morgan

Anthony LaPaglia

Al Garcetti

Glenn Plummer

Bobby

Peter Sarsgaard

Jimmy the Finn

Deborah Kara Unger

Colette

Chandra West

Liz

BD Wong

Bubba

R. Lee Ermey

Verne Plummer

Shalom Harlow

Nancy

Shirley Knight

Nancy Plummer

Meat Loaf

Danny Trejo

Little Bill

Azura Skye

Teresa

Rex Linn

Detective Bookman

Josh Todd

Big Bill

Ricky Trammell

Creeper

Kenji Nakamura

Kamikaze Pilot

Paula Scarpino

50's Housewife

Mike Randleman

60's Trucker

Justine Visone

Supermarket Cashier

Charles Carroll

Zapruder

Lee Holmes

Oswald

Jerry Gauny

Freak Cook

Tanner Giles

Bobby's Daughter

Rachel Ezra

Bobby's Girlfriend

Mpho Koaho

Kid Selling Guns

Chuck Kuespert

Bar Owner

Val Lauren

Third Shooter

Tom Fitzpatrick

Karaoke Man

Christian J. Fletcher

Stool Sample Courier

Rene Rivera

FBI Agent

Doc Duhame

Skipper

Rosario Dawson

Tweaker (uncredited)

Crew

D.J. Caruso

Director

Tony Gayton

Screenplay

Butch Robinson

Producer

Jim Page

Editor

Thomas Newman

Original Music Composer

Frank Darabont

Producer

Danny Wynands

Stunts

Tim Trella

Stunts

Amir Mokri

Director of Photography

Doc Duhame

Stunts

Bill Corso

Makeup Department Head

Ken Aguado

Producer

Eriq La Salle

Producer

Jim Behnke

Executive Producer

Deborah Aquila

Casting

Tom Southwell

Production Design

Douglas Cumming

Art Direction

Amanda Moss Serino

Set Decoration

Karyn Wagner

Costume Design

Jim Behnke

Production Manager

Christy Dimmig

Post-Production Manager

Alison Harstedt

Production Supervisor

Tony Adler

First Assistant Director

Norma Lee

Hairstylist

Patricia Miller

Key Hair Stylist

Ashlee Petersen

Key Makeup Artist

Ken Diaz

Tattoo Designer

Steve Borgese

Greensman

Larry Guy Clause

Construction Foreman

John R. Elliott

Construction Coordinator

David Fanderlik

Propmaker

Kenneth Garrett

Sculptor

Tim Gomes

Painter

Kent Johnson

Art Department Coordinator

Lynda Reiss

Property Master

Eric Sundahl

Set Designer

Greg Wilkinson

Leadman

Mary Andrews

Dialogue Editor

Petra Bach

Dialogue Editor

Thom Brennan

Foley Editor

Eric Bretter

Sound Recordist

Howell Gibbens

Supervising Sound Editor

Elizabeth Kenton

Supervising ADR Editor

Mark Mangini

Sound Effects Designer

Bill Shotland

Boom Operator

George Simpson

Sound Effects Editor

Darrell Pritchett

Special Effects Coordinator

Manny Perry

Stunt Coordinator

Greg Cantrell

Best Boy Electric

Philippe Carr-Forster

Camera Operator

Daniel C. Gold

Camera Operator

John Grillo

First Assistant Camera

Kris Guthrie

Rigging Grip

Chris Haarhoff

Steadicam Operator

George A. Hock

Rigging Gaffer

Richard Mall

Key Grip

David Pearlberg

Dolly Grip

Max Pomerleau

Chief Lighting Technician

Morten Petersen

Lighting Technician

Stephen Vaughan

Still Photographer

Joseph F. Warren

Gaffer

Alison Gail Bixby

Costume Supervisor

Leslie Sungail

Key Costumer

Vince Filippone

First Assistant Editor

Tracey Wadmore-Smith

First Assistant Editor

Bob Berkus

Location Manager

Rob Gibson

Location Manager

Bill Bernstein

Music Editor

Thomas Pasatieri

Orchestrator

David Aaron

Armorer

Ruth Auerbach

Studio Teachers

Roland Bleitz

Armorer

Judith M. Brown

Studio Teachers

Shari LaFranchi Blakney

Production Coordinator

Susan Malerstein

Script Supervisor

Thomas John McGowan

Studio Teachers

Jack Tice

Studio Teachers

Henry Kingi

Stunts

Bob Brown

Stunts

Mike Justus

Stunts

Danny Rogers

Stunts

James Camomile

Special Effects Technician

Andrew Shulkind

Camera Intern

Terence Blanchard

Musician

Reviews

John Chard

⭐ 8/10

May 30, 2015

My name is Tom Van Allen. I'm a trumpet player.

The Salton Sea is directed by D. J. Caruso and written by Tony Gayton. It stars Val Kilmer, Vincent D'Onofrio, Peter Sarsgard, Doug Hutchinson, Anthony LaPaglia, Debora Kara Unger, Adam Goldberg and Luis Guzmán. Music is scored by Thomas Newman and cinematography by Amir Mokri.

Danny Parker (Kilmer) is hanging out with a bunch of methamphetamine users, apparently in an effort to numb the pain of his one time life that saw his wife murdered. Or is he? The word of mouth for it was strong, but no sooner did it hit cinemas than it disappeared off the face of the earth. However, the cult cinema world is often a vibrant place to lurk, enter there and you find The Salton Sea, a wonderfully tricksy and off beat neo-noir awash with misery, revenge, redemption and odd ball characters that are either stuck in purgatory, or heading to nowhereville.

Protagonist Danny Parker leads the film, a man whose identity is fractured after being dealt a blow from the hands of fate, very much in limbo mentally, he none the less has goals to achieve, nothing is never quite as it seems until director Caruso wants us in on the side-shifts. Danny is often in the company of danger and weird characters, from a hopped up harpoon wielding loon, to a no nose psycho (too much meth up the nose will make you lose it kids), via dirty cops and meth heads, it's a world of unease, the twisty plot drawing the viewer in with a kinky smile on its face.

Caruso also pulls off the neat trick of placing humour in this off kilter world without hurting the dramatic harshness of the thematics. There's a quite brilliant sequence that shows a botched crime being attempted by the meth head crew, this we watch at the same time as they discuss about actually pulling the crime off. That it involves a stool sample from Bob Hope should tell you all you need to know about the intelligence of the wannabe perps! Caruso's camera is fluid and he uses certain neo-noir visual tricks of the trade as well (time lapses etc), and he also has a knack for varying the mood without averting the slowly bubbling to the surface pace that the story requires.

Kilmer is superb, perfectly low-key, there is no need for rage, the yearning for revenge and redemption, for identity, is brought out via calmly delivered dialect, and it's very affecting. D'Onofrio as Pooh Bear, the afore mentioned no nose fella, steals the movie with another of his off the planet nut-jobs. Elsewhere, Sarsgard is as appealing as he has ever been as Danny's stoner best mate, Hutchinson and LaPaglia cut fine figures as dirty cops, while Guzmán and Danny Trejo leave an impressively grungy mark. The only disappointment is the lack of screen time for Kara Unger, a fine actress, she is playing what turns out to be a critical femme fatale role, but really we needed more of her. It's a rare misstep in an otherwise cracking neo-noir that is highly recommended to fans of similarly devilishly fun pictures. 8.5/10

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Status

Released

Original Language

Budget

$18,000,000

Revenue

$1,073,198

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The Salton Sea (2002)

Where to watch

Top Billed Cast

Crew

Reviews

John Chard

Recommended Movies

Redeeming Love

Backrooms

San Andreas

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

Status

Original Language

Budget

Revenue

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