This is good example of those film students who may think "I could make a film like that Tarantino, Stone, and Lynch". Not as easy as it looks to be different, quirky, avant-garde, and off your noodle.Here we have a fair try but it is confusing and redundant (and not in any good way). The stylish look is not done in any new, fashionable, kind of way, it is done in a, by then (2002) ordinary, onslaught of dark humor and blatant bizarreness that smacks, rather than strokes the viewer. It all becomes tired and tedious and seems drawn out and long.All the actors are suitably kinda kinky performers, except for the lead, who delivers a wooden, mumbling, uninteresting character that is consumed by anyone or anything that is on screen at the same time. The Native American Casino part of the story is offensive and over-the-top (again not in a good way). So we are given a mimicking attempt that fails to be nothing more than just a little bit interesting. Better luck next time.

It's a big sloppy mess, but it's not half as bad as some comments would leave you to believe. The story goes all over the place, but the story is just a thread. There's a lot of Coen Brothers and a bit of David Lynch in this film. Wonderfully weird and unlikeable characters, nicely composed, sparse scenes nicely photographed and the humor is not of the joke/punch line school, which is probably why there are many disappointed comments. The budget for this film could not be called shoestring, it's more like twine. Still, despite the disassociated story - I mean, who has the money really doesn't matter, it's just getting us from point A to point B - it's quite an accomplishment. Some people like their films to be obvious stories that are easy on the eyes, this is a more subtle form of entertainment with a garish touch.

OK... First of all... worst movie ever. I've had a better time with a toothacheNo character development....Guy gets into trouble, Girlfriend gets whacked.. Whole movie there are visuals of guy and girl happy and laughing on swingset or whatever. Whole movie is based upon him being upset about girlfriends death. 2 days timeframe into the movie guy screws other girl.... What the??? Ya! He really cared about her.... Acting sucked.... Personal low for some great names... Bill Pullman.. Chris O'Donnell... My man Michael Rappaport.... Keith David...Rachel Leigh Cook.... Ummm.. I guess the sequel to Josie & the Pussycats fell through huh??? Anyways.. independent or not..... This movie reeks!!! I could film a better movie in my basement. 1-800-Collect commercials with David Arquette have more merit!!! Don't even waste your time walking by it in the video storeTwo thumbs, Two Feet & Nose pointing Straight down!!!

the friend i first watched this with hated the movie when he rented it. of course, this friend also bought XXX, having not ever seen it. so i guess that speaks for that.*spoiler(s)*the script is phenomenal. i really enjoyed the touches of humor, especially since they were so off the wall most of the time. i get a kick out of the chief trying to talk like a movie Indian. the whole bit with the guy not being able to "sire" is insanely funny, and i love it when he pretends to die with the other patient's heart monitor. any of the scenes with the sheriff are great. my favorite punchline of the movie is: "son, you don't need a lawyer, you need a library card." but how about that chase sequence at the end? a limo trying to ram a bus? now that's just absolutely hilarious.otherwise, i like how this is a post-post-western. it's still got guns and a sheriff and bad guys going after money and indians. and even though the drifter says it's really about trying to find someone you can trust, i know better. it's really about our country screwing the indians, all over again. the chief's final bit about white people taking their land, and then giving them whiskey, and then pitying them as drunks, and then giving them gambling, and then making them beg for their money... well... it's a bit preachy... but then all westerns (and post-westerns and post-post-westerns) are supposed to be about the dying frontier. the frontier is dead, but the Indian has cancer. i think the opening shot of the pro-Indian-casino billboard and the interpretive shot of the chief's rage (as he's running at the camera, towards the bus) towards the end of the film perfectly underscore this tribute to the dying survivors of the frontier.in addition, i thought the camera work was well done. although the director recycled his few obvious uses of technique, namely the flashback montages and the 360-degree pan shots, i thought they were decently spaced and efficient. i also really appreciated the tastefulness that was used in filming the sex scene. panning away, and letting the imagination do the work is what really makes an intimate scene sexy. lubitsch knew that, and apparently so does ricagni.