Amazon.com: David Duchovny is a blocked author with a fascination for outlaw killers who hatches a plan to road trip through America's mass-murder landmarks to finish his book. He enlists his frustrated photographer girlfriend Michelle Forbes, who desperately wants to leave the East Coast for L.A., to illustrate the tome, and they advertise for riding partners. Luckily for them, they wind up with a veteran killer, the greasy trailer-park ex-con Brad Pitt, who decides to skip parole with his cowering child-woman girlfriend Juliette Lewis. Duchovny is enamored by gun-toting Pitt's recklessness and lawless disregard for, well, everything; he's simultaneously terrified and thrilled by Pitt's brutal beating of a barfly. Meanwhile, Pitt's leaving a trail of corpses in their wake.
Directed with a cool remove by Dominic Sena (Gone in 60 Seconds 2000), Kalifornia falls somewhere between Badlands and Natural Born Killers. Pitt brings a ferocious magnetism to his part, but it's still hard to buy genial Duchovny's odd attraction; Juliette Lewis conveys a terrifying sense of victimization with her poor dumb creature. Despite the film's best efforts, it never really plumbs the psyche of Pitt's simmering psycho--he's just plain bad, you know--but it does fashion an effective little thriller out of the tensions brewing in the restless quartet. --Sean Axmaker
Kalifornia Great movie. The entire cast is superb and Brad Pitt is truely convincing as the killer.
DOMINIC SENA, OPUS 1 ***1/2 1993. Directed by Dominic Sena. Two couples travel west. David Duchovny is a psychologist and Brad Pitt a serial killer. Thanks to Juliette Lewis and Brad Pitt's performances, this movie could be worth your time.
Going to California with a Killer I didn't really believe Brad Pitt could be convincing as the repulsive low life serial killer Early. I also didn't believe Juliette Lewis could create a sympathetic character out of his apparently developmentally disabled girlfriend Adele. Yet both Pitt and Lewis stunned me with their realistic portrayals. Unfortunately the film is not credible because it does not seem plausible that grad student/writer/aspiring serial killer expert Brian (played by David Duchovney) and his tough girlfriend who takes "not ready for the Bible Belt" photographs would be either desperate or stupid enough to agree to drive Pitt and Lewis's very seedy looking characters in their car several thousand miles to the promised land of California just for some help with the gas money. This cross country trip is made even longer by several planned stops to infamous murder sites Brian and Carrie need to make for research for a book they are planning and that plot point does nothing to enhance the believability of this film. Although the film does evoke a nightmarish feel as it progresses and Pitt and Lewis's performances are very good the movie does not really rise above the level of mediocre thriller. And as one would expect in a road movie with a serial killer there is a lot of graphic violence and other images that do not make this a good choice for the squeamish.
Intriguing Story w/Great Acting Brad Pitt has none of the "pretty boy" thing working in this disturbing little flick. He plays an creepy sociopath so well, that you forget it's him - he is totally transformed. Juliette Lewis does a great job as his big-hearted girlfriend. Mesmerizing for those drawn to the Tarantino & Rodriguez style of dark humor & violence.
Painful The plot of the movie is flimsy and the acting is poor. Don't waste your time.
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