At Close Range

After young Penn is thrown out by his stepfather, he encounters his real father (Walken), who impresses the lad with his life as a successful outlaw in the Pennsylvania backwoods. He trains up the boy in stealing anything that moves, and life seems very jolly and fulfilled in a hillbilly sort of way. Then Walken is slowly revealed to the boy's eyes as a murderer and rapist; and when the boy and his friends decide to blow the whistle, the guns are turned inwards on the family. Foley has opted for a mixture of documentary 'realism' and set pieces which have clearly escaped from over-lit pop promos. Mingle this with Penn and Walken going heavily over the top in usual Method fashion, and the brew is less than intoxicating. CPea.