Billy Bob Thornton comes across well as a calculating drug dealer who wants his money back. Retreiving it from the loser "druggie" (Eric Stoltz) who stole it leads to Galveston, where Stoltz is hiding out. The movie is engaging, with a logical plot, and decent character development. Screen time is divided about equal between Thornton's pursuit and Stoltz's reuniting with his old Texas cronies. "Don't Look Back" has one very important flaw, and unfortunately it is a desperately weak ending. The "Rambo-like" conclusion seems forced, and totally out of place with what has preceded it. Nevertheless, there is enough good solid plotting, and quirky characters to keep it afloat. - MERK
8 Reviews
Another offbeat title from (i.a.) Tom and Billy Bob.
punishmentpark28 January 2014
Warning: Spoilers
I was curious to see this one again, both because I hadn't seen it in a long time (and subsequently didn't remember much of it) and I had seen 'One False Move' recently, a somewhat offbeat thriller, which was written by Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson as well (although here, there were more writers involved). And, to begin with: the writing here is again quite well done, except for the end of it, where I didn't much care for the choice to let Morgan have his 'day at the beach' - including a poor death scene and, at the very end, Jesse and Steve are seemingly not feeling more than a just little awkward about all that had gone down...
Again, like in 'One False Move', there is some pretty hard violence in it, in which Amanda Plummer 'steals the show' as a victim when her Bridget meets her untimely end. Then, there's a (short) scene that reminded me strongly of 'Pulp Fiction', but then again, maybe 'Psycho' was the first to use the idea of the coincidental meeting at a crosswalk...? The point made elsewhere in a review that the viewer would feel burdened to sympathize with lead character Jesse, as he is selfish, reckless and at the root responsible for all the ensuing misery, is a fair one and well taken into account by yours truly. But also note the great writing (ideas / dialogues) in parts such as the 'public toilet drug bust'-, 'the out in the woods rehab'- or the 'is he talking about her or her boat'-scenes. Well, great, they're sort of devious and original - offbeat for short, I suppose.
The acting is overall pretty good, though I found some bits by Corbett not up to par, e.g. in the aforementioned doozie of a death scene.
7 out of 10.
Again, like in 'One False Move', there is some pretty hard violence in it, in which Amanda Plummer 'steals the show' as a victim when her Bridget meets her untimely end. Then, there's a (short) scene that reminded me strongly of 'Pulp Fiction', but then again, maybe 'Psycho' was the first to use the idea of the coincidental meeting at a crosswalk...? The point made elsewhere in a review that the viewer would feel burdened to sympathize with lead character Jesse, as he is selfish, reckless and at the root responsible for all the ensuing misery, is a fair one and well taken into account by yours truly. But also note the great writing (ideas / dialogues) in parts such as the 'public toilet drug bust'-, 'the out in the woods rehab'- or the 'is he talking about her or her boat'-scenes. Well, great, they're sort of devious and original - offbeat for short, I suppose.
The acting is overall pretty good, though I found some bits by Corbett not up to par, e.g. in the aforementioned doozie of a death scene.
7 out of 10.
Good drama despite weaknesses
bob the moo18 July 2002
Junkie and down and out Jesse stumbles into the middle of a drugs buy. He steals $200,000 from the deal and flees for his hometown in Texas. He joins up with his childhood friends, however the owners of the money begin to search for him and get closer every step.
This story by Thornton is actually quite a good drama. The plot is split in two one with Jesse with his friends in Texas, the other with Marshall and his gang working his way back to his money. The stuff with the gang is very good but is maybe too cruel for it's own good, however it works well as a crime thriller. The rest with Jesse is OK but doesn't work totally because he is quite a selfish character who brings a lot of harm to those round him are we supposed to feel sorry for him or like him?
The cast are all very good. Stoltz is never brilliant but is quite good here, however of the three friends Corbett (Northern Exposure) is the best. Billy Bob Thornton is on top form as Marshall and his gang has a few well known faces the only downside is that the gang are maybe too cruel and their laughing as they kill makes it quite hard to watch at times.
Overall this is better than I expected. The story isn't anything special but it has enough nice touches to make it interesting. The weakness mostly lies in the unsympathetic nature of a character we're supposed to root for.
This story by Thornton is actually quite a good drama. The plot is split in two one with Jesse with his friends in Texas, the other with Marshall and his gang working his way back to his money. The stuff with the gang is very good but is maybe too cruel for it's own good, however it works well as a crime thriller. The rest with Jesse is OK but doesn't work totally because he is quite a selfish character who brings a lot of harm to those round him are we supposed to feel sorry for him or like him?
The cast are all very good. Stoltz is never brilliant but is quite good here, however of the three friends Corbett (Northern Exposure) is the best. Billy Bob Thornton is on top form as Marshall and his gang has a few well known faces the only downside is that the gang are maybe too cruel and their laughing as they kill makes it quite hard to watch at times.
Overall this is better than I expected. The story isn't anything special but it has enough nice touches to make it interesting. The weakness mostly lies in the unsympathetic nature of a character we're supposed to root for.
A joke
hardcoresocrates14 November 2005
Warning: Spoilers
Predictable Unmotivated Pointless Caricatures Contrived Actors did what they could Actors clearly indicated they were embarrassed to do this Not one emotional connection REAL SEQUENCE FROM FILM "Who you callin?" (sic) "The police"(sic) "You can't do that, Stevie. Hang up the phone"(sic) "Jesse got a sh-t load o' drug money, you can't go involving the cops"(sic) "I'm not so sure stealing money from criminals is a crime. Even if they arrest him at least he'll be alive"(sic) "Listen to me, Stevie, this ain't handled right, Jesse's gonna end up dead. Now hang up that f-in phone." (sic) Best Friend starts to load up guns Brother, "Hey, what're you doin'?" No answer. "Hey, I got a family to worry about." (Keep in mind his child is sitting right there watching-ish all of this) Then more and more and more exposition
Notice how in the above sequence, at no time do the police on the other line say, "Hello? Hello? Uh, we can hear everything you're saying. We're sending someone over there right now."
Embarrassment for all. Oops.
Notice how in the above sequence, at no time do the police on the other line say, "Hello? Hello? Uh, we can hear everything you're saying. We're sending someone over there right now."
Embarrassment for all. Oops.
Very Entertaining
tarbosh220008 February 2004
This HBO Movie is very exciting action thriller. Not to be confused with the Bob Dylan documentary of the same name. The whole cast does a great job and it should be more widely recognized. Eric Stoltz as usual is great as the bum who becomes a hero and Billy Bob Thornton plays a scary villain. Peter Fonda is in it for a few minutes as a hit-man. The action scenes are very suspenseful and you will be entertained. It's on DVD, so hopefully people will rent it. Other great HBO movies include: "Citizen Cohn", and "Citizen X". You will hooked into the film very quickly.
For more insanity, please visit: comeuppancereviews.com
For more insanity, please visit: comeuppancereviews.com
Nice offbeat thriller
bellino-angelo201416 December 2021
Jesse Parish (Eric Stoltz) is a loser and heroine addict that lives in Los Angeles and spends his nights wandering around and getting himself into trouble. One particular night he goes on a parking lot and finds in a car left open a suitcase full of money that belongs to Skipper (Dwight Yoakam). This won't be a smart idea as the drug dealers to which Skipper owned the money (led by Billy Bob Thornton) will stop at nothing for having their money back even after Jesse leaves for California for returning to his childhood friends (one of them played by John Corbett). Will Jesse manage to save himself, his friends and the money he stole with the best intentions? See the movie.
While this is a made for TV movie and of course obscure, I really liked it probably because the plot was very tense and the situations very similar to those of theater released thrillers (including those of the period of this one). Eric Stoltz gives a very good performance as a former loser that finally has a chance in life after stealing lots of money while also being on the run from the dealers. Billy Bob Thornton as always is a very delight to watch and the shots of California beaches both at day and night were nice to look at.
If you ever have a chance of finding this movie even on late night TV, give it a try especially if you are a thriller fan as it has the favourite elements for fans of the genre.
While this is a made for TV movie and of course obscure, I really liked it probably because the plot was very tense and the situations very similar to those of theater released thrillers (including those of the period of this one). Eric Stoltz gives a very good performance as a former loser that finally has a chance in life after stealing lots of money while also being on the run from the dealers. Billy Bob Thornton as always is a very delight to watch and the shots of California beaches both at day and night were nice to look at.
If you ever have a chance of finding this movie even on late night TV, give it a try especially if you are a thriller fan as it has the favourite elements for fans of the genre.
pretty good
billybrown4111 July 2001
Warning: Spoilers
{SPOILER ALERT} This HBO movie came out about five years ago. It's too bad because it probably would have done pretty well in theaters considering the cast. There are a lot of recognizable faces here, but hang on, let me go through the plot real fast.
Jesse, is a struggling musician who moved to Los Angeles from his hometown of Galveston, Texas. Sometime during the seven years he was there, he became a heroin addict. One night he comes up dry and while looking for a quick fix, he stumbles onto two men (one being Dwight Yoakem) arguing over a botched drug deal. He steals a briefcase containing $300,000 and decides that he's going back to Galveston to straighten his life out.
When word works it's way back to Marshall (Billy Bob Thornton in a real Badass role) that a good chunk of his money has been ripped off, he and his cronies start a trek through L.A. looking for Jesse. It's clear that Jesse really doesn't have a clue just how over his head he is. These are some hard-asses who could care less about life. All they want is what's theirs. They're looking everywhere for Jesse, visiting his hangouts, and even killing off some of his friends.
Meanwhile, Jesse's in Galveston. He's staying with his two best friends who are doing their best to ween him off the heroin. When they question his money, he says that it all came from a lucky night in Vegas.
It's pretty obvious from the get-go what's going to happen and how things are going to turn out. We know that the baddies will eventually find their way to Galveston to kick Jesse's ass, and this would be fine. Jesse is a wholly unsympathetic (but somehow likeable) character. All of the real suspense comes from worrying about his totally innocent buddies who have made decent lives for themselves.
Even though the ending is somewhat predictable, it does not hurt the rest of the film. There is a lot of fun along the way. I had a blast seeing Billy Bob in a part like this. It reminded me a lot of his character in "One False Move". He looked NOTHING like he does today and he was about forty or fifty pounds heavier then, I'd say.
Dwight Yoakem is disposed of pretty early. It was funny seeing Billy Bob giving HIM a hard time after it being "vice versa" in Sling Blade.
Eric Stoltz (Lance from "Pulp Fiction") does fine here. The man is a very talanted actor and the part of Jesse seems tailor made for him. He is very convincing as the failed musician who unintentionally brings trouble with him.
Jesse, is a struggling musician who moved to Los Angeles from his hometown of Galveston, Texas. Sometime during the seven years he was there, he became a heroin addict. One night he comes up dry and while looking for a quick fix, he stumbles onto two men (one being Dwight Yoakem) arguing over a botched drug deal. He steals a briefcase containing $300,000 and decides that he's going back to Galveston to straighten his life out.
When word works it's way back to Marshall (Billy Bob Thornton in a real Badass role) that a good chunk of his money has been ripped off, he and his cronies start a trek through L.A. looking for Jesse. It's clear that Jesse really doesn't have a clue just how over his head he is. These are some hard-asses who could care less about life. All they want is what's theirs. They're looking everywhere for Jesse, visiting his hangouts, and even killing off some of his friends.
Meanwhile, Jesse's in Galveston. He's staying with his two best friends who are doing their best to ween him off the heroin. When they question his money, he says that it all came from a lucky night in Vegas.
It's pretty obvious from the get-go what's going to happen and how things are going to turn out. We know that the baddies will eventually find their way to Galveston to kick Jesse's ass, and this would be fine. Jesse is a wholly unsympathetic (but somehow likeable) character. All of the real suspense comes from worrying about his totally innocent buddies who have made decent lives for themselves.
Even though the ending is somewhat predictable, it does not hurt the rest of the film. There is a lot of fun along the way. I had a blast seeing Billy Bob in a part like this. It reminded me a lot of his character in "One False Move". He looked NOTHING like he does today and he was about forty or fifty pounds heavier then, I'd say.
Dwight Yoakem is disposed of pretty early. It was funny seeing Billy Bob giving HIM a hard time after it being "vice versa" in Sling Blade.
Eric Stoltz (Lance from "Pulp Fiction") does fine here. The man is a very talanted actor and the part of Jesse seems tailor made for him. He is very convincing as the failed musician who unintentionally brings trouble with him.
Was pleasantly surprised
robomaster4223 December 2011
Was bored with the normal crap on every channel flipped around saw that this movie had Eric Stoltz in it and remembered him form the fantastic killing of Zoe movie so decided to watch it.. it was late and figured what the hell... well an hour later I had to record this as it was raw hurt... I mean wow it would not let me go..but I had to. Finised it last night what a frigging good movie.. I mean it just turns your guts.. Eric is great as usual but the rest of the cast is right there Billy Bob who would have thought you love being mean like that
And in the end it just feels right I am waiting for more
ROBO
And in the end it just feels right I am waiting for more
ROBO
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