Convenience rules. When great-grandpa Henry (Michael Cane) dies in a KFC restaurant, it's only after he has written all the necessary instructions for his son and grandson to follow. He has even taken into consideration the death of his bulldog, Sky, on the following day after his master's death. Just before Henry's death his long lost son Turner (Christopher Walken) miraculously comes back. Following Henry's instructions for scattering his ashes (mixed with those of Sky) through Arizona and New Mexico, Turner and his son (abandoned as a baby and raised by the granpa) seek reconciliation. When the truth is finally revealed, Turner dies. Dogs come and go in and out of the picture. The kid also comes and goes, very conveniently. What kind of screenplay is this?
The land of enchantment, Nuevo Mexico, offers its eternal, sheer beauty. The location is around Los Lunas, my mentor Rudolfo Anaya's landscape. The music could have been better. In fact, that's already an understatement.
Christopher Walken is great, of course, but there is nothing beyond that in this film. It's hard to believe this film won the "Jury award" at 2004 Montreal World Film Festival. The film runs a little over 80 minutes. Its length or lack theoreof is surely a virtue.
