User reviews

I enjoyed this film. Engaging storyline, with well rounded characters. I thought the cast was fantastic. It was good to see Lara Flynn Boyle back onscreen in a film. I thought the real standout actor was Ronnie Gene Blevins. He gave a great performance, and I'm looking forward to seeing his future projects.

Without giving any spoilers, it was a very satisfying ending, to a good story.

As the movie opens, we find our boy Billy getting paroled after spending seven years in the pen only to discover his beloved mother is dying from liver failure. Billy wants to do everything he can to save his mom but has to dig way down in the slop in order to have any hope of so doing.

Several very good performances from veterans Lara Flynn Boyle (mom) and Bruce Dern as a very unlikeable cartel mobster. Relative unknowns Ronnie Gene Blevins in the lead role of Billy and Stephen Lang as one of mom's caregivers also turned in memorable performances.

All in all, it was very watchable with a couple good plot twists, a moderate to high amount of violence, and a good ending.

I really enjoyed this film. Didn't know much what to expect. Explores a lot of elements of human emotions and human nature. Evil, redemption, sacrifice, and more. Definitely worth a watch.

If you strip down the core of the story it is very good. However the script and execution would have lots of room for doing it better. Like if they had the time and money to hire a really good script writer and a bit better direction here and there would have improved it greatly.

Set in El Paso (but mostly filmed in New mexico), a 35-ish man is up for parole and ends up getting out of prison, we later find out after seven years. His 50-ish mom has had a hard life and is a receptionist for a legal firm. But she has bigger problems, even as a non-drinker she is experiencing liver failure. The son will do anything to help his mother live.

I really can't say much more without spoilers. It is a hard movie to stick with for the first half hour or so, it seems a bit rough and over-the-top in many places. My wife gave up at about the 30 minute mark but I was curious so kept watching. Overall I am glad I did, there is a pretty good movie in there, cleverly disguised as an amateur production.

On DVD from my public library.

Seriously, who's idea was it to cast Dern as some big rich drug lord/gangster? The guy looks and sounds like a drunk bum. I was cringing every time the camera was on him and his straggly hair, and started talking like a drunk. He may have worked in a comedy version of this story. Worst casting decision I've ever seen; that casting agent needs to change careers. Then you have Ronnie Gene Blevins all monotonic and straight faced, looking like he was bored and only there for the paycheck. I struggled to stay awake when most of the focus was on him. The only stand-out and convincing performances were by Lara Flynn Boyle, Stephen Lang and Cher Cosenza.

The directing by novice writer and director Scott Windhauser wasn't too bad for a newb, and although the stories concept was amazing, the execution was less desirable. There were many plot and technical issues. Some dialogue was cheesy and/or unnecessary. It lacked any type of action. Why just show flashes of him and the bouncer? Some nice exciting action would've been refreshing to give the audience someone to route for - and struggle less staying awake. The pacing needed improvement, as the 101 min runtime felt much longer. The score was actually not bad for a B-film, but I had some issues with the sound, as some dialogue sounded muffled and illegible. It's a shame, because this story had lots of potential, had it been cast properly with some tweaks to the screenplay. So never mind all the bogus high reviews, it's a generous 6/10 from me.

A couple of half decent performances struggle to keep their head above water in a sea of awful lines and bad editing. One of those movies that is so bad that it's awful!

Death in Texas is that rare find of a film that intertwines gritty action with a well scripted drama that is both entertaining and thought provoking. The script and directing managed to attract a full roster of established actors whose skilled are well intact and then support them with up and coming talent like Cher (Cheryl) Cosenza as "Jennifer." "Jennifer's" role as muse and catalyst is integral to driving the story forward and Cheryl plays the tricky part on point. "Jennifer's" real life daughter even makes a cameo and fittingly steals the scene from a thieving lead character. It's fun at the end to scour the credits for all the familiar faces while pondering the themes of the film...

Just being same blood type doesn't mean you are a transplant match. Need 5 markers to match. Hollywierd needs better fact checkers.

Good story, but directed & paced like molasses in winter. If you're afraid to do action scenes, don't, it would have been better off to skip them and have them explained by a character after the fact. It's much easier on the audience than doing what was done here and make those watching suffer through the stupid blurred out, unbelievable and illogical scenes.

A waste of a talented cast as Dern was too over the top and Bogomil just looked so bored so they were directed like half the cast didn't want to be there.

To many cliches re how the main character can take pain, especially since half the time he looks like he's suffering from constipation and the other just like he's not even there.

The exception to the film was Lang & Boyle, both did a good to great job in their interaction/sentimental exchange, it's for them that the rating was 2 more stars than deserved.

To those saying this was the best thing since sliced bread, grow up or i hope you got paid well.

Not so great, shallow, not believable in any way. Characters are cut from the world around and make random decisions or ones thoroughly explained. It all seems to made-up to not be called bad. That said, I did keep watching it, despite the flaws. I don't know if acting is bad or screenplay is at fault, but dialogs are often void, sensless and filled with words that should bring a great meaning, but they just make it cringe. I'm also stunned at the level of production, which offers beautiful aerial shots and close-up transitions, bringing action without cutscenes, but also feeling way ahead of storyline. Mediocre at best.

This movie has so much going for it. For one, the cinmetography of East Texas is epic. The story is oddly sweet and touching but the action keeps you moving! Loved seeing Laura Flynn Boyle make an appearance on the scene again, and she was very good, but the acting by Ronnie Gene Blevins steals the show. Some nice twists keep you guessing. See it! Very well executed for a small budget and hope to see more from this movie making team.

Excellent movie! Full of action-violence 😬 we really enjoyed this movie!

Caution: This is not a bang-bang action flick. To tell the truth, it's not really my type of favorite movie (action and sci-fi, etc.). It's more of a real-life drama with a couple of criminals involved than anything else. But I watch a lot of movies and by that I can tell, this is a really, really well-executed movie. Great acting, good camera, no plot holes, great actors and plenty of drama. I enjoyed this movie a lot. It's not your over the top story or a bunch of invincible super heroes. Much more down to earth real life. A really good movie. No way anything below 7 in my book for what it is. Well recommended.

What a fun ride! Great cast! Explosive action and edgy characters set against a moral struggle to do one last good thing before your time is up. Death in Texas is as hot as the pico at the cantina, so if you're gonna take a shot, make it a double.

This movie grips your attention from the get go. Highly recommend it to anyone looking for something fresh. The characters suck you in and pull you right into the storyline. A Must See!!!

Beautifully shot, a story beautifully told and performances at their finest. Possibly one of the best things that I have had the honor to watch during this pandemic and in my lifetime. Sometimes a message is told this way and this is the only best way.

Wonderful movie with a true to life story set in El Paso, TX. Ronnie Blevins does an excellent job portraying Billy, a troubled man who, despite his time in jail, loves his Mom and is willing to go to great lengths to help her.

I really enjoyed Stephen Lang in this role (he plays John, the love interest of Billy's mom.) I think he is a great looking guy and have seen him play tough, but this movie allowed him to show an entirely different side.

Of course, Bruce Dern plays an incredible bad guy. And for those who are old enough to remember him and John Wayne, there is a special surprise at the end of this movie.

Definitely worth seeing! Enjoy!

This was a great movie with surprising twists. Expect a lot of action and sentimental moments. It was a perfect combination of both.

Really encapsulates what the meaning of sacrifice is, especially when it comes to family.