richard harrington of "the washington post" heralded the film's aesthetic elements, writing that it "is so beautifully filmed by bojan bazelli, and so skillfully edited, that its art house surface belies its exploitation content, making this a trip through a cool world rather than a cruel one." the "chicago tribune"s gene siskel echoed a similar sentiment regarding the relationship between the film's artistic merit and its representation of violence, noting: "["kalifornia" is] yet another terribly violent film about a serial killer. and although the script suffers from an ending that doesn't have that much to say that's fresh about remorseless murderers, the trip is worth taking because we meet four indelible characters in one compelling scene after another." joe brown of "the washington post" was dismissive of the film on the grounds of its violent material, deeming it a "new nadir in nauseating nihilism." writing for the "los angeles times", kenneth turan noted that though the film is visually "slick and stylish," it "doesn't make the encroaching mayhem any easier to take," and felt that the performances of pitt and lewis registered as "mannered and even a trifle repetitive."