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The Salton Sea

The Salton Sea

Crime · Drama · Mystery · 2002

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.

Movie details

The Salton Sea

“If you're looking for the truth, you've come to the wrong place.”

2002 Crime · Drama · Mystery 1h 43m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.6 / 10

Community rating

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.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Salton Sea?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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D.O.A.

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Basic Instinct

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

D.J. Caruso

Written by

Tony Gayton

Val Kilmer

Val Kilmer

Tom Van Allen | Danny Parker

Vincent D'Onofrio

Vincent D'Onofrio

Pooh-Bear

Adam Goldberg

Adam Goldberg

Kujo

Luis Guzmán

Luis Guzmán

Quincy

Doug Hutchison

Doug Hutchison

Gus Morgan

Anthony LaPaglia

Anthony LaPaglia

Al Garcetti

Glenn Plummer

Glenn Plummer

Bobby

Court is in session

Put The Salton Sea on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Auteur Devotee

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.