Truth or Consequences, N.M.

REVIEW
A taut thriller directed by actor Sutherland in his debut behind the camera, Truth or Consequences, N.M. is a violent and very satisfying chase movie. Curtis (Sutherland) is the trigger happy ex-con fronting a gang of thieves intent on robbing a drug dealer and selling the stash to the mob. When the heist goes awry, and an undercover cop is killed, Curtis flees west with his partners. The film has some nifty plot twists and double crosses on the way to the title city where the final confrontation between the gang, the mob and the DEA takes place. Although the tension is never unbearable, the film is coolly absorbing. Sutherland's crisp direction of this escalating crime spree is marred only slightly by some gratuitous bloodshed and unnecessary camera flourishes; but he coaxes flinty performances from the cast.