U Turn (1997)

Strong and Moving!

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Sean Penn knocks it out of the park. An over looked flick in Oliver Stone's filmography, which can be very hit or miss. Great cast playing weird characters, an intrinsic plot that keeps you guessing and Stone's unique visuals all add up to one hell of a ride through Superior, Arizona. Definitely a trip worth taking.

Probably my favorite film by Oliver Stone and one of my favorite opening scenes. Seems to me this film is about the state of the nation when the Indians had the land and the state its in now. None of the reviews I've read of this film have mentioned the images of Indian tribes people that pop onto the screen at various times during the movie. All of the characters in the movie betray each other at some stage. Sort of harks back to the times of broken treaties. Great shots of of the landscape go unnoticed by the the characters as they go about their selfish enterprises. Respect for the land and for one another gone. Amidst some of the humour a sad undertone.

Oliver Stone's film is full of quirky characters and does a U-turn from being a complicated little thriller into the realm of black comedy.Stone turned up the irony knob just a little too high in "U Turn"; no one wins and everyone meets an end that has its own ironic twist.Sean Penn plays Bobby Cooper, an unlikely tennis coach who is driving across Nevada with a bag of money. He needs to repay a debt to criminals who have cut off two of his fingers to expedite the repayment. He takes a U-turn off the main road when his prized, 1964 and a half Mustang Convertible bursts a radiator hose. He ends up in Superior, a dilapidated town 200 miles from Phoenix.Bobby leaves his car to be fixed at a repair shop on the edge of town run by the disgustingly dirty and dentally challenged Darrell played by Billy Bob Thornton.He meets Grace McKenna, Jennifer Lopez's character, who invites him home to help her hang curtains. When Grace's husband Jake, played by Nick Nolte, finds them together, he punches Bobby. Not your typical hero, Bobby falls to the floor whining. He can't take a trick. Robbed, beaten up, conned and used, he has little control over his life. Even his mother hangs up the phone when he rings her for help.Although Jake initially dismisses Bobby as a wimpy, pipsqueak, he offers him money to kill Grace, noting of Bobby's character, "You're a man without scruples," also telling him not to be offended because, "A man who's got no ethics is a free man." At first, Bobby refuses the offer, but after his fortunes plunge even further, he has second thoughts and agrees to kill Grace, leading to more double and triple crosses than it would be thought possible to cram into one movie.As Bobby becomes more involved with Grace, he discovers that she is also Jake's daughter – a U-turn into Roman Polanski territory. However, the surprise twist in Polanski's Chinatown is just more plot overkill in "U Turn". Eventually Bobby and Grace plan to get rid of Jake and take his money.Grace McKenna is very much sought after by men in this movie; an interest that proves fatal to all of them. However, Bobby Cooper is not quite besotted enough to want to share Jake's money with her, and they try to outmanoeuvre each other at every turn. The most ironic twist of all is reserved for Bobby when he is virtually the last man standing.No tricky camera angle is avoided in "U Turn", and like so much else in the film, this is overdone to the point that you almost expect every scene to be reflected in someone's sunglasses or viewed between the cameraman's legs.Despite its pretentiousness, the spectacular cast and the outrageous plot keep you going until the end – even if that ending is a bit of a letdown.

Compelling characters & cast drive film noir into excellent sunset.Have you every felt down on yourself. Nothing goes right during the day? Hmmmm? SEE his movie.With twists and turns along the highway of deceit and corruption, this is a great film to watch. With great dialog, acting, characters, and sound track/score I can't understand why this film didn't make more money at the BO.This dark comedy film noir is a character and cast buffet of delightful snacks. Imagine a town with: Hero on the run from the mob stranded in town, the local filthy, goofy rip-off backyard mechanic, a ultra hot sexy femme fatale, tough local sheriff, really crusty old local perverted rich guy, crusty old poetic blind man, cranky & flirty troublesome young couple, Russian mob hit man chasing Hero.Stir, simmer for two hours add Ollie Stone. Yummy! a great stew to be savored with a nice glass of Cabernet SauvignonGuys will need a cold shower after watching femme fatale Grace seduce Bobby while she is hanging her new curtains. (Does the carpet match the drapes?)EXTERIOR: DAY – JUNK YARDDarrell convinces Bobby that it will be hard to fix a blown radiator hose on his 1964 ½ Mustang. (Great Scene)