Val Kilmer is such a missed talent and was very much a part of many people’s childhoods. I remember watching the train wrecks that were Batman Returns and The Island of Dr. Moreau and thinking he was the best part of each. He would also give me a core memory with the frightening The Ghost and the Darkness, scaring yet enthralling me as a kid (the movie remains one of his most underrated projects to this day). I have my favs, and you, the reader, probably have yours. Top Gun was not for me at the time, but it is often the first film that comes to mind when talking about iconic 80s movies; or perhaps you are thinking of Willow, Tombstone, True Romance, or Heat?
However, I am telling you, from one Val Kilmer fan to another, the 2002 Neo-Noir The Salton Sea may be one of his best you missed out on, as it was largely overlooked due to poor box office performance. Trading in his more flamboyant style, he instead has to run on the fuel that is pain and never-ending grief. There’s no better time to revisit it than now to celebrate one of cinema’s greatest actors.
‘The Salton Sea’ May Have Bombed at the Box Office, but It is Neo Noir Storytelling at Its Finest
The Salton Sea is a Tarantino-esque kind of noir that follows Danny Parker, a drug addict on meth who’s also an informant for two cops who do anything but protect and serve. Parker is trying to set a deal with a drug lord named Pooh Bear, who seems to own the entire meth operation (meth is referred to as “gak” in the film) in the area. But the speed freak also hides a secret beneath the long nights of using drugs with his friends: He was once a trumpet player whose wife was killed by robbers. He’s Tom Van Allen, and all he wants is to avenge the death of his wife.
The film then moves toward a long final act in which Van Allen’s ultimate plan is revealed. We won’t spoil it for you, as things get very complicated when it’s discovered that Van Allen is working for the FBI as well. The Salton Sea was written by Tony Gayton and directed by D.J. Caruso. Producers included Frank Darabont and TV star Eriq La Salle. It was released by Warner Bros. Pictures, and though critics liked it, The Salton Sea bombed at the box office, earning only a little over $1 million against its $18 million production budget..
Val Kilmer’s Uncompromising Performance in ‘The Salton Sea’ Is Proof of His Range
Kilmer’s performance as Tom Van Allen/Danny Parker is impressive. It was one of the actor’s attempts at staying in the spotlight after disastrous movies like Red Planet and The Island of Dr. Moreau. Although the film often plays with its tone mashup of comedy and crime movie tropes, Kilmer’s role is grounded. It becomes essential to maintain balance amid the movie’s twisty, sometimes messy narrative.
The Salton Sea could have been a post-Requiem for a Dream feature that repeated the same message as its predecessor. And while Caruso explores psychedelia with a few nightmarish sequences, it doesn’t drift away from its main storyline: It’s a thriller about immeasurable pain being the force that drives Van Allen to pursue the purest form of revenge in a world infested with drug-fueled monsters. The emotionally complex performance by one of the best actors of his generation keeps the movie from spiraling out of control, thanks to its unique depiction of the drug underworld.
Kilmer’s performance is not the only outstanding one in the movie. The cast is impressive, with B.D. Wong, Adam Goldberg, Peter Sarsgaard, and Luis Guzmán deliver noteworthy performances that will stay with you. However, it’s Vincent D’Onofrio’s role as Pooh-Bear that shines above the rest. The Daredevil star is as great as ever, playing an erratic villain with a memorable look. He lacks a nose, as he snorted so much gak that it fell off. This renders him physically awkward, but he compensates enough with a sociopathic attitude that’s very unsettling.
‘The Salton Sea’ Deserves a Second Chance for Neo Noir and Val Kilmer Fans
The Salton Sea may not have had the best result at the box office, but it certainly deserves another chance decades later. 2002 was the year of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man, Attack of the Clones, and The Two Towers — all behemoths in the land of franchises. Thrillers like The Salton Sea were excellent but didn’t get the same attention as some of the year’s highest-grossing films. Thrillers, and especially bleak ones like The Salton Sea, felt a bit out of place as the nation was still recovering from a horrific terrorist attack, and audiences preferred features that allowed escapism over realistic crime films.
Regardless, give yourself the chance to see the jarringly sad but bizarrely uplifting neo-noir The Salton Sea. Kilmer’s smile could cure the blues on every rainy day, even if it’s in a thriller that often steps on nihilism, goes heavy on the psychedelic, and has one of the best villains of 2002. An absolute must-watch that deserves a second look.
- Release Date
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February 2, 2002
- Runtime
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103 minutes
- Director
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D. J. Caruso
- Writers
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Tony Gayton
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
