The Killing Time (1987)

The script of this movie never shows why or how a seemingly decent, almost boring small-town cop is transformed into a scheming bad-ass who plans not only murder, but to pin the blame for it on a fellow officer. Love is just not enough, especially when the object of it, Camelia Kath, is so woefully lacking in the femme fatale department. Then there is Keifer, who is excellent, except we don't get to see much of him. A lot could have been done with this character, but instead we get large dollops of the poisonous relationship between two quite unattractive people (Kath and her nasty, clichéd, property tycoon husband). Hitchcock could probably have pulled off a denouement in sand dunes on an overcast day but probably not many others could. However, I thoroughly enjoyed Joe Don Baker's performance as the old sheriff.

Above all, I mean the opening and ending scenes, which could be different: the first killed a lot of thrill for subsequent events, the latter was too abrupt and short. The tensions are also not maintained high throughout the movie and events connected to the past remain vague and uncompleted. Dramatic scenes end as suddenly as they begin and do often not provide additional value to the movie; the plot does not run smoothly, the scenes are rather "minced".But performances are good (Bridges, Baker, Kath) or great (Sutherland, Rogers); Madsen could have played a bigger part. The Killing Time fits quite well into its title, especially if you like something happening in a quiet American town, without constant chases and bursts.

I rented this movie and was very disappointed in it. I like Kiefer a lot, but this is not one of his best performances. His acting isn't bad, but it's not good either. The movie is boring and I should have rented something else. And as for Camelia Kath, I've seen better looking scare-crows in farmer's fields. She's gross! The story line is nothing special, good cop against bad cop. This can get boring really fast. Wife plans murder of her husband with her boyfriend. Brilliant! And you just know it's not going to go as planned. If you need help getting to sleep tonight, rent or buy this movie. Sweet dreams!!! I give this movie a 1 out of 10.

If "The Killing Time" is ranked well below average, this is mainly due to its implausibility and inconsistency. I could enumerate lots of reasons why the scenario is totally incredulous, but simply describing how the film starts, will suffice: A stranger (Sutherland) kills a man who was on his way to a job as a deputy sheriff in a small California coastal town. The murderer subsequently goes to the town, assuming the killed man's identity and starting to work in the police precinct himself, without anyone noticing that there is something wrong! The sequel of events does not get any more plausible: We watch the existing deputy sheriff Sam Wayborn (Bridges), as he plans along with his girlfriend Laura Winslow (Kath), the murder of her husband Jake (Rogers), with the intent of putting the blame on his new colleague. Throughout this inconsistent story we experience lots of annoying plot gaps, which render the movie a rather boring experience.Unfortunately, the direction does not help either. I do not know the other works of director Rick King, but I bet this is not his best one...The same goes with the acting: With the exception of Kiefer Sutherland, who manages to inject some liveliness in his role as a psycho stranger, the rest of the cast is mired in mediocrity.Quite disappointing. 3/10.