Truth or Consequences is a small, dusty city in New Mexico with a very strange name and this documentary is ostensibly about it -- but that label might be a bit misleading, especially if it sets expectations of talking heads, confessionals or explanations of things. ToC is not remotely interested in explaining anything to anyone -- it's an elegy for a place in the process of vanishing or has vanished or never was. Rejecting many conventional hallmarks of documentary filmmaking (or just narrative filmmaking in general) in favor of open spaces and hushed silences, ToC is nonetheless anchored by an unwavering humanity toward its subjects -- and, I'd argue, its viewers. A lyrical exploration of things lost and remembered, ToC also manages to evoke New Mexico, one of our greatest and most elusive states, more than all the maps, photos and "realism" in the world. Provided you don't go in expecting a travelogue, ToC will haunt you long after you're gone.
Review of Truth or Consequences
