Kingdom Road

Conner ( Blood Moon ) tries without success to pass himself off as a latter-day James M. Cain. Rock guitarist Winn Cahill abruptly leaves his gig in Los Angeles to return to the Sacramento area, where his ex-girlfriend Liana, now a widow, lives. When they have a friendly reunion at a Fourth of July celebration, Liana's date, Tommy, tries to provoke a fight. Liana feigns illness and gets Tommy to drive her home, then sends a note to Winn, begging him to visit her. While they are making love, Tommy bursts into the room and threatens Winn. To protect him, Liana kills Tommy and convinces Winn to dump Tommy's body in a canal and run his truck into the river. Sheriff Mooney, who suspects Liana of killing her husband, isn't fooled by the staged accident, however. On the lam in Mexico, Winn wonders if Liana hasn't used him to murder Tommy and vows to find the connection between Tommy and her husband's death. But Winn is such a bland character that the story becomes merely a long, pallid dirge. (Sept.)