SnoopyStyle The narrator recounts the history of methamphetamine or speed starting with the Japanese and WWII. He's posing as tweaker Danny Parker (Val Kilmer) working with Jimmy the Finn (Peter Sarsgaard) to get high. He's an informant for corrupt cops Gus Morgan (Doug Hutchison) and Al Garcetti (Anthony LaPaglia). He lives in a rundown apartment next to an abused neighbor Colette Vaughn (Deborah Kara Unger) in hiding. In his earlier life, he was trumpet player Tom Van Allen with loving wife Liz (Chandra West). He tries to set up a large buy from drug dealer Pooh Bear (Vincent D'Onofrio) and the cops want in.Director D. J. Caruso is trying very hard to make a meth movie with style. The wackiness is weirdly interesting. I don't mind it at all but it's a bit too precious with the reveal. It's a lot of crazy characters and it would be helpful to connect better with Val Kilmer. He's obviously hiding something. That keeps a barrier between him and the audience. The disjointed feel of the movie keeps the tension a bit too low.

tomsview If ever a movie turned out to be not what I was expecting, this is it.Narration sets the tone for this quirky, yet disturbing movie. "Wait until I've told my whole story, but don't give up on me just yet – nothing is as it seems", says Val Kilmer's character, Tom Van Allen, as he plays an anguished trumpet solo while his apartment burns down around him. The story is played out in a long flashback. Methedrine addiction underpins the story. Van Allen explains the all-consuming nature of speed or crank addiction and the world of the addicts – the tweakers. As Van Allen tells his tale, we see his alter ego, Danny Parker, at a four-day tweaker party in the suburbs – "the land of the perpetual night party". Covered in tattoos and sporting heavy rings and chains, Parker is an arresting sight. Although tweakers at first glance would seem to be the neighbours from hell, Danny Parker sees worth in the denizens of this twilight world. "When you finally hit rock bottom", He explains, "you know who you are because you can't go any lower, and you find intimacy with those who can go the distance".However, Danny's rock bottom is another notch down from the average tweaker because he is also a police informer. Danny pinpoints crank dealers for two unsavoury detectives. One of them, Al Garcetti, played by Anthony LaPaglia actually seems worse than the drug dealers he pursues. Eventually, the two detectives cut Danny loose, warning him that Columbian drug dealers are hunting him. But Danny doesn't run, instead, he attempts to set up a bust by himself. It is then that we realise that Tom Van Allen / Danny Parker may have another agenda after all. He has descended into tweaker hell after his wife, a methedrine addict, was killed while shopping for drugs in a crank house that was raided by what appeared to be a rival gang. Van Allen survived but is so racked with guilt that he assumed the identity of Danny Parker to try and track down the killers himself.Of all the disturbing characters in the movie, the most confronting is Pooh-Bear played by Vincent D'Onofrio. Danny seeks out Pooh-Bear to set up a huge crank deal that fits in with his scheme for revenge. Pooh-Bear has lost his nose from overuse of crank and now wears a plastic one in its place –in one scene Danny happens upon him before he has glued it on for the day. Pooh Bear's lack of nose was achieved through clever CGI work."The Salton Sea" has more depth than a simple description of the plot would imply. Only in the last ten minutes or so does it become more contrived and predictable. Not a bad effort when many movies these days feel contrived and predictable from the opening credits. Aided by an eye-popping performance from Kilmer, "The Salton Sea" never loses its grip on the audience. Thomas Newman's score combined with trumpet solos by the late Gil Evans, accentuate the mood of this film about a man who to expiate his guilt, has descended to the lower rungs of society. "The Salton Sea" makes a compelling movie out of a depressing subject without in any way making the lifestyle appear desirable.

John Raymond Peterson Is Val Kilmer out to set a record? He's got six productions set for 2012 release, on top of his list of 76 acting credits. Salton Sea is in my opinion his last feature film worth watching. He's played second fiddle in several since then and had lead roles in mediocre productions but the potential many moviegoers had seen in him have sort of faded away and I hope he'll do something worthwhile soon but I'm not holding my breath. Has his mark as an actor fans want to see vanished with his best behind him? Red Planet, The Saint, Tombstone, Thunderheart, The Doors, all good movies but a fraction of what he's done. The Salton Sea may be Kilmer's best. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, really? Enough about him; the movie is a good crime drama and has a supporting cast to match.I had to dig back many years to find this movie. It's a dark movie but powerful nonetheless. Vincent D'Onofrio's performance is outstanding, though brief. There's suspense and action to keep a die-hard fan of the genre glued to the seat. The rating by users has consistently been good at the various sources I like to refer to, but not so much from the critics. I can't think of any dark movie scoring well with critics; they must have sensibilities beyond that of the average moviegoer.

KineticSeoul I saw a poster to this movie a long time ago and found it sort of interesting but never seen the trailer in theaters although I tend to go to the movies a lot back than. Especially with it's tagline, which didn't help get a understanding of what this movie is about. But from the beginning scene it clearly shows this movie is about tweekers. And is mainly focused on one tweeker Danny Parker/Tom Van Allen(Val Kilmer) who has a double lifestyle. I was actually quite shocked with the direction this movie went since I thought it would be a very serious movie, but the cinematography didn't seem all that serious. In fact this movie has some comedic elements in it. Besides the unexpected direction and besides the movie being all over the place at times, it does get put together a bit later on. And after it was finished I actually liked this movie, not a great film like some people claim it to be but I still liked it, especially the style of this, well sort of. And especially how the plot comes together and how it all fits together. Val Kilmer did a good job of playing the witty tweeker in this and his performance was enjoyable to watch. This is a unpredictable movie with some good elements in it that revolve around drugs and other stuff which I won't be giving away. I am glad I took the time to watch this film and it won't disappoint.7.4/10