the second serial - killer thriller of the month is just awful .
oh , it starts deceptively okay , with a handful of intriguing characters and some solid location work .
after a baby - sitter gets gutted in the suit- ably spooky someone's - in - the - house prologue , parallel stories unfold , the first involving a texas sheriff ( r . lee emery ) , a gruesome double murder , and the arrival of a morose fbi agent ( dennis quaid ) on the eve of voting for the local lawman 's reelection .
the second pairs a hitch- hiker ( jared leto ) with a friendly former railroad worker ( danny glover ) .
they 're headed west , toward the rockies and away from the murder scene .
which one is the killer ?
well , it does n't really matter , 'cause when writer / first - time director jeb stuart ( die hard ) finally spills the beans , you wo n't take his choice seriously anyway .
the whole thing goes south about an hour in , with the tale taking hairpin turns that i certainly could n't follow
.
and through the whole thing there 's quaid , playing with the most intense monotony this side of steven sea- gal .
i guess i 'm glad that i did n't walk out--
there 's some nice train stuff at the end and a fun nod to dr .
strangelove .
finally spills the beans , you wo n't take his choice seriously anyway . the whole thing goes south taking hairpin turns that i certainly could n't follow is just awful with the most intense monotony