South of Heaven, West of Hell

It tried, very desperately, to be deep. The writer inserted forced existential references. The director jammed in obscure images. The editor made it painfully slow. Presumably, so the audience could fully absorb the nuance and meaning of every, excruciatingly dull moment. Poorly, written, badly directed, dismally edited, ironically, only the acting was good, but the actors are probably ashamed of having been in the film. A sophomoric attempt at Nietzsche in the old west, this is one of the worst movies ever made. I want the hour and three quarters of my life back...

I am a fan of all of the main actors in this movie, and can honestly say that they clearly gave it their best effort, but this movie is a waste of time. Because this was a movie and not a mini-series, there was no character development, and too many characters to begin with - it was impossible to understand why any of them behaved in the odd ways that they did, or said the odd things that they said. Perhaps if they'd stuck with just Dwight's US Marshall and the Henry gang, as the plot synopsis leads you to believe, it might have been better, but by throwing in another dozen unexplained characters it just distracted and left the whole thing a meandering, confusing mess. Other reviewers have suggested that this is a "brilliant" movie, with sublety and powerful, deep symbolism. I strongly disagree. For the record (and specifically to one reviewer) I neither voted for Bush nor watch Kim Kardashian, but I like a movie to be entertaining. I like movies that exhibit a decent level of intelligence. I like to be able to understand and care about the characters. I like good, well written, believable dialogue. I like a plot that actually makes SOME semblance of sense. This movie offers none of that.

Absolute worst movie I ever saw. Had to be made on a dare or a bet that ANYTHING can sell. There were NO redeeming features at all. I watched the whole movie because I just couldn't believe it was so bad, I had to watch it to the end. Save yourself the time... it really was that bad. I should have believed the review that I read before renting it!!

Great cast, wandering story, stilted dialog.

This was a fantastic film. The best way to describe it quickly would be to say that it's like a David Lynch film. That's not taking anything away from Dwight's talents here at all because it's Lynch-like only in a way of explaining it , but not a Lynch clone (not nearly as obvious in it's darkness). The pace is slow, but there is always something happening, it is not a dragging movie and it flows nicely. There is so much depth to the film. The acting is almost spot on. Billy Bob Thorton's character is brilliant (athough he's only in it about 20 min.), Bridget Fonda was excellent and Vince Vaughn's performance was also excellent (took me the second viewing to figure how much so). The actor who played "Sanchez" was great too. The location and cinematography were really a big part of the feel of this film. I wish I was eloquent enough to do this film a justifiable review. If you liked Deadman I think there is a good chance you'll find the quality in this film. This is not a Hollywood Western nor is it a Action Western (although there is a lot of it) so if that is what you are looking for you'll probably find this disappointing, but if you're looking for something a bit weird and strange with an interesting twist (see the review of the gentlemen who claims to have his finger on the pulse of America) this is really it.

This was the worst movie I have ever seen in my entire life.

This film provides an opportunity to engage in exhaustive (and harsh) film criticism were one willing to take the time. I am not, but for this.... I am amazed that any of the actors saw any potential in it. It is a horribly written script, and is so poorly directed that even good actors such as Thorton and Vaughn come across as ridiculous. Sharon Stone, who once dated Dwight Yokum, once said that being with him was "like eating a dirt sandwich" Watching this film was like being forced to digest it. Apple iTunes, in highlighting this film in their $.99 Rentals, do their customers a disservice.

This movie is what I would consider the first existential Western I've ever seen. The only negative thing this movie is guilty of is far to small of a budget, just listen to the door knocks throughout the film. Most Americans wont get this movie anymore then they could grasp I <3 Huckabees. After all these are the people that re-elected George Bush and watch the Kardashians because they find them interesting. This movie is for out of the box thinkers who pay enough attention to detail hence the title: South of Heaven West of Hell. Where would that be? That would be Purgatory. That's right every character in this movie is dead. Hello World! Know that little gem of a information going into this movie and it will open up doors of perception you didn't know existed. The symbolism in this movie is deep and well thought out. The style of cinematography is brilliant and beautiful. The cryptic occult and religious undertones are brilliant genius. This movie wasn't made for the status quo, it was made for people who are truly independent non linear thinkers. I hope some slick producer like Quentin Tarantino does this movie again in 20 years with a fat budget to give this film it's true due. This is not Dwight Yoakam's best acting performance, but the man was wearing a lot of hats as a writer, Director and Star in this film. It was his creation and it's fantastic for those of us who can grasp it. Vince Vaughn's character Taylor Henry is downright Scary, Paul Herman is in a form never seen before in anything he's ever done. Bridget Fonds is beautiful and adds contrast and Billy Bob Thornton seems to be the only person who knows not only his charter but everyone else is dead. Dwight Yoakam sums it up in near the last seen of the movie, "I don't know if I'm certain of my existence only my intentions ". I wish I could give this film 6 stars, one of the best thought provoking movies I have seen in years!

This was by far the worst movie ever, pretty much all I can say, save your money!

Great actors, but great country singers/writers (Owens and Yoakum) should stick to country music. This movie is not worth 99 cents or 9 cents. Sorry. I really wanted to like it. I love Dwight Yoakum, but I don't like this movie. It's not even bad good. It's just bad. Reasons to watch this movie: skinny Vince Vaughn and Billy Bob Thorton in an awful wig. Awful. Awful.