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Los Angeles, July 2008 - and it's an election year, with the whole election hinging on the Californian results - that's the prediction at least. But the country's in utter chaos as on one hand it's involved in too many wars all at once so general draft is in effect again, on the other economic hardship put the country on the brink of civil war. And where there's a war brewing, there are always fractions that try to profit on both sides, which would on one side be the Neo-Marxist movement, on the other mysterious scientist Baron von Westphalen (Wallace Shawn), who wields his power over Republican vice presidential candidate Frost (Holmes Osborne). Caught somewhere in the middle is action movie star Boxer Santaros (Dwayne Johnson), who's on one hand married to Frost's daughter (Mandy Moore), but has on the other hand had an affair with porn star Krysta Now (Sarah Michelle Gellar), which he doesn't even deny but is blackmailed with. And on the one hand, he has somehow lost his memory, on the other he has written a script that's a key to the many inexplicable things happening of late - inexplicable things that a cop (Seann William Scott) suffering from PTSD, who might or might not have an identical twin or be his identical twin, might be the key for ...

I'll be perfectly honest, above synopsis doesn't do Southland Tales too much justice, as for much of the time it's rather unclear what the film's really about, with many key plot points rendered absurd by their later explanations - which seems to be 100% intentional in this case and really works for the movie, which comes across as a highly original blend of action movie and self parody, political satire and weird science fiction, esoteric fantasy and arthouse cinema, a film that takes one on a trip for the trip's sake, not for its outcome, and that despite its many (intentional) inconsitencies flows really nicely. And if you don't overthink it and just enjoy, you'll be greatly entertained, too.

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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