This past weekend, I googled for some best independent films to watch, and this was one of the ones that came up on the list, and it sounded intriguing and had a bunch of good actors like Chris Cooper, Matthew McConaughey, Kirs Kristofferson, and Elizabeth Pena (basically everyone listed in the image above!), so I ended up watching it.

It takes place in the fictional town of Frontera, Texas in the fictional county of Rio County. Rio County Sheriff Sam Deeds (played by Cooper) is called out to the desert where skeletal remains were found by two civilians. Testing soon determined that the remains turn out to be Charlie Wade (played by Kristofferson in flashbacks), the Rio County Sheriff who went missing several decades earlier. This makes Sheriff Deeds uneasy, as he knows there was an incident back then between Sheriff Wade, and Deeds’ father, Deputy Buddy Deeds (played by McConaughey in flashbacks), and he begins to wonder if his father (who became the new Sheriff when Wade disappeared) may have been involved in the disappearance/death of Sheriff Wade.

As Sheriff Deeds begins to investigate and dig into the past, all kinds of uncomfortable history begin to bubble up to the surface. This movie also has several other side stories about parental relationships, forbidden romance, and racism among the American and Mexican citizens in the city.

It was an enjoyable movie that didn’t go too fast, or too slow. It didn’t focus more on action, and less on the story. It was the opposite. It was a classic whodunit with a twist. If you like 90’s mystery movies type, you might want to check this one out!