Truth or Consequences, N.M.

A modern-day (south)western, Kiefer Sutherland's feature directorial debut revolves around a posse of small-time bandits-cum-drug-dealers who accidentally steal their boss' money and kill a cop in the process. As you might suspect, the heat turns up considerably as the motley group runs, hides, and encounters unforeseen hurdles at every dusty corner. Though the first half of Truth is a tired and relentlessly predictable remake of the bad-boys-on-the-run-with-hostages genre, the second half picks up speed. And while there are certainly scenes chockfull of grit and gore, equal amounts of film time are spent on character development. Among the many likable characters is an undercover narcotics cop, an ex-con (Vincent Gallo) trying to get his life together with his perky pregnant girlfriend, and two naive prosciutto-eating yuppie-types who are held as the necessary, albeit token, hostages. The relationship between Gallo's character, Raymond, and his girlfriend is surprisingly touching, and the hostages are multidimensional, but director Sutherland's character--a neurotic, trigger-happy blockhead named Curtis--is less-than-real and detracts from the gravity of the overall film. Truth be told, this turns out--on balance--to be a reasonably engaging film and a decent directorial debut. An optional purchase. (A. Glover)