Roger Avary collaborated (as a writer) with Quentin Tarantino in his early projects, so it's no surprise that his own directing debut would be in the same vein: dirty humor, sudden bursts of violence, unlawful and immoral characters, pop references, etc. And it's an impressive debut - if never as outstanding as "Reservoir Dogs". The first half is druggy and draggy, but the second half is arresting (no pun intended). Eric Stoltz is a little bland, but Jean Hugues Anglade dominates the film as an unrelentingly psychopathic villain - he keeps you in a state of nervous apprehension about what he may do next. *** out of 4.