Directed by:
Donna DeitchScreenplay:
Natalie CooperCinematography:
Robert ElswitCast:
Helen Shaver, Patricia Charbonneau, Audra Lindley, Andra Akers, Alex McArthur, Dean Butler, James Staley, Denise Crosby, Donna Deitch, Jeffrey Tambor (more)Plots(1)
Donna Deitch’s tender, ground-breaking debut, a landmark in queer cinema and a triumph of independent filmmaking. Desert Hearts was ground-breaking upon its 1985 release: a love story about two women, made entirely independently, on a self-financed shoestring budget, by a woman. In the 1959-set film, an adaptation of a beloved novel by Jane Rule, straitlaced East Coast professor Vivian Bell (Helen Shaver) arrives in Reno to file for divorce but winds up catching the eye of someone new, the younger free spirit Cay (Patricia Charbonneau), touching off a slow seduction that unfolds against a breath-taking desert landscape. With undeniable chemistry between its two leads, an evocative jukebox soundtrack, and vivid cinematography by Robert Elswit, Desert Hearts beautifully exudes a sense of tender yearning and emotional candour. (Criterion)
(more)Reviews (1)
This is a relatively bold film for its time, at least in the subject matter it wants to portray, but not so much in how it portrays it. It is a lesbian romance, which unfortunately is relatively classic in its conception, yet the actors, who are not that well-known, are able to capture your attention and you believe in their story.
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