'The Salton Sea' opens in a burning room.  Val Kilmer is crumpled on the floor 
against a column playing a wistful Miles Davis tune on the trumpet as the flames 
lick around him.  Kilmer's voice comes in and he introduces himself as Tom Van 
Allen, or was it Danny Parker.  The opening sequence is tight and engaging. The 
voiceover speech is captivating while establishing the existential 'who am I?' 
question that the movie is ultimately about.  The visual elements are equally 
enticing, and establish the plot question that leads the viewer through the 
movie: Why is Tom/Danny waiting to die in a burning room? 

'The Salton Sea' is the latest of a group of neo film noir films posing 
existential questions through stylized non-standard narration.  Some other 
members of this group are 'Memento', 'Fight Club', 'Twelve Monkeys', 'Terminator 
2' and to a lesser extent 'The Man Who Wasn't There'. In all aspects, 'The 
Salton Sea' pales in comparison to any of these for a number of reasons, but 
I'll hold my tongue on all but two.  First of all, the plot isn't very 
streamlined, and this carries over to the visual style.  At the end there were 
more than a few scenes whose purpose I questioned. The subplot of stealing Bob 
Hope's stool, for one.  For another, and more damaging to the film, it's not 
really clear why Danny is involved with the major drug deal with Pooh Bear 
(Vincent D'Onofrio).  And that drug deal is the focal point of much of the plot.
***SPOILERS TO COME***
Secondly, I would rework the ending.  It's easy to say this about a lot of 
movies, particularly ones with Hollywood endings like 'The Salton Sea', but bear 
with me, my adjustment makes more sense than the actual one and keeps the 
original message.  Original Ending:
Danny fakes out the FBI at the motel, and goes to Pooh Bear's ranch 30 minutes 
before the deal is meant to take place.  Danny, knowing The Cops are watching 
and in fear for his life, shoots up Pooh Bear's posse.  As expected The Cops 
enter in ski masks to steal money and drugs.  Danny kills them, completing Tom's 
mission.  He then returns home, where he is shot in the gut by Quincy (Luis 
Guzman), a member of the crime family he ratted on.  His cigarette falls from 
his hand and starts a fire in his apartment.  His friend, Jimmy (Peter 
Sarsgaard) saves his life, and he starts anew for the third time.  Tom gets his 
revenge. Danny gets gut shot for being a rat.  Val Kilmer's character lives on, 
and "I like his chances".
My (Better) Ending:
Danny fakes out the FBI at the motel as before because he wants his revenge on 
The Cops.  He goes to Pooh Bear's ranch 30 minutes before the deal is meant to 
take place.  At Pooh Bear's is Quincy who has since found out that Danny is a 
rat.  This explains the shoot out in the kitchen.  Outcome is the same, but 
instead of Danny being shot in the chest while wearing a bulletproof vest, he 
gets "gut shot for being a rat" by Quincy.  Anyone who's seen 'Reservior Dogs' 
knows it takes a long time to die after being shot in the gut.  So then The Cops 
enter in ski masks.  Danny's fight with the cops would have to be slightly 
different to account for him being shot in the gut, but no big deal.  
Ultimately, Danny kills The Cops.  Tom gets his revenge.  In the cop fight or in 
the shoot out in the kitchen, some accident happens and Pooh Bear's meth lab 
blows up, causing the house to catch on fire.  Danny slumps against a column, 
and wraps up the monologue he started in the opening scene (let the trumpet he 
was playing be symbolic).  Then the FBI enters, saving Danny's life.  Let Pooh 
Bear or one of his posse escape.  Danny goes into the witness protection 
program, and his new life starts.
Thing my ending handles better than the actual one:
1) The source of the fire.  In my ending its speed and plot related, in the 
actual ending its accidental.  There may be an allusion in the final/opening 
fire to the meth lab explosion making fire relevant.  In which case, make that 
allusion clear by making the source of both fires the same.
2) Danny being shot.  In the real ending, the culmination of Tom's life and 
Danny's life are disjoint.  Danny being shot in his apartment is somewhat 
anticlimactic compared to the intense emotional fight at Pooh Bear's ranch.  My 
ending brings some cohesiveness to the climax of Tom/Danny's life.
3) The source of his new life.  In the real ending, we are expected to believe 
that Danny's friend Jimmy shows up at his apartment just in time to save his 
life.  Too coincidental.  The FBI has already been established as a player in 
the drama, and they have the ability to grant a new life through witness 
protection.  I'm shocked this was overlooked; it seems so obvious a solution.

Within any genre or movement, there are masterpieces and imitators.  The 
imitators are essential in establishing and developing the genre, adding bulk to 
the canon, but will soon be forgotten.  'The Salton Sea' is an imitator, but I'm 
thankful for it.  This budding movement is pushing mainstream film in ways never 
before seen.