Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
A federal agent searches for a potential killer among the bizarre residents of a dilapidated Los Angeles hotel.
Wim Wenders' L.A. fable has striking visual style—sun-bleached, languid shots of urban decay that are genuinely memorable—but the murder-mystery plot is thin and meandering, struggling to sustain momentum. The ensemble cast (Mel Gibson, Jeremy Davies, Milla Jovovich) delivers eccentric, committed performances, though unevenness creeps in. The film's conception, drawn from a Bono-co-written story, has an idiosyncratic outsider-art atmosphere that sets it apart, but the resolution lands flatly and fails to deliver on the promise of its moody setup.