THELMA AND LOUISE

Things go from bad to worse in THELMA AND LOUISE when Thelma, a bored housewife, and Louise, a waitress at a coffee shop, sneak off in Louise’s ’66 T-Bird convertible for a three-day fishing trip and getaway weekend that turns into a cross-country escape.

Wanting to have some fun, the girls stop along the way at a honky-tonk for some dancing and drinking. Outside in the parking lot, Louise foils a rape attempt against Thelma, then shoots and kills the assailant when he persists in uttering obscenities.

Fleeing the scene, Thelma and Louise fight and argue over who is at fault, while trying to figure out what to do next. Louise opts for Mexico and arranges for her boyfriend to wire some money. Thelma phones husband Darryl and due to the way he’s been mistreating her, agrees to go. An outlaw cowboy-hitchhiker joins them and after fornicating with Thelma in a motel room, teaches her the ins and outs of convenience-store robbery.

The Arkansas state police, meanwhile, gather enough leads to set up surveillance procedures in Darryl’s house should Thelma call again. When the hitchhiking cowboy absconds with Louise’s cash, Thelma puts into practice what she’s learned by robbing a store.

Racing now through the New Mexico desert, the desperate duo are pulled over for speeding, but manage to lock the policeman in his car trunk. Later, incensed by a bad-mannered trucker, these wild women retaliate by blowing his tanker to kingdom come.

The offenses continue to pile up as the desperados, armed and dangerous, run roadblocks and the like. Eventually, with what looks like half the army in pursuit, their luck runs out when they come to the Grand Canyon. Not wanting to give themselves up… Well, let’s just say there’s one less T-Bird around these days.

Unbelievably, the viewer is asked to sympathize with these lame-brained, gullible characters. However, no sympathy will be forthcoming, because Revelations 16:11 comes to mind, “and still they refused to repent of what they had done.” Thelma and Louise are fundamentally despicable characters, amoral losers who give us nothing to admire, respect or like.

THELMA AND LOUISE is the latest film that further continues the assault on the family and, in particular, on marriage. The marriage relationship between Darryl and Thelma, portrayed as bad, is mocked through innuendo and slander. In one scene, Thelma emerges from a night of adulterous lovemaking with the hitchhiker, absolutely ranting and raving about it before Louise.

The surrealistic scenery is the one good thing to say about the picture, with its dusty oil fields, rising plateaus and desert night sky. Too soon are the effects spoiled when Thelma or Louis open their mouths to take a swig off a bottle of Wild Turkey, or to utter one of a hundred or more obscenities and profanities. The movie glorifies ugliness, yet it will probably be described by others as high art. Do yourself a favor and skip it.