U Turn

Have you ever had the feeling that if you had just turned right instead of left things would have been different, and possibly better. In this story Oliver Stone takes us on a journey that explores that idea and drags us kicking and screaming to an end that no one would want to be a part of. Leading the diverse cast, which includes Nick Nolte, Clair Danes, and Jennifer Lopez, in this ride into a personal Hell is Sean Penn, who gives one of the best performances of his career.
On his way to pay off a gambling debt, Bobby’s car blows a radiator hose and when he decides to stop in Superior to get it repaired his entire life is tossed into the grinder and he can’t stop the bad things from happening. Some of the camera angles and techniques that Stone uses are reminiscent of his work on Natural Born Killers but here it lends more to the creepiness of the surroundings than to the storytelling as it did in Killers. The supporting cast around Penn is marvelous but the stand out actor here, even though the role isn’t that big is Joaquin Phoenix. The performance that he turns out shows how much of a up and coming star he was to become.
The story within the town alone is a condensed version of the outside world where all of the problems are the same even though the characters seem a little odd. With all the hits and misses that Stone has produced over the years your never quite sure how one of his movies is going to turn out. So I can truly say that I was completely amazed at how good this film is, with a strong story and a cast that just doesn’t quit, Stone and Penn take the audience on a ride that you soon won’t forget.