Queering the Canon: DESERT HEARTS (1985)
Celebrating the 40th anniversary of its theatrical release, experience or revisit Donna Deitch's Nevada-set classic of lesbian cinema – and one of the greatest love stories of all time in a 2K Restoration.
Description
Opening Night Film
2K Restoration
Donna Deitch’s classic of lesbian cinema is one of the greatest love stories of all time in a 2K restoration. The year is 1959 and Professor Vivian Bell has arrived in Reno, Nevada for a divorce. There she meets Cay Rivers, a backwards-driving, jean short-wearing sculptor/casino employee who is brazenly herself. These two opposing forces circle around each other, falling in lust and love, as Cay dares Vivian to take a risk for something more.
Celebrating four decades since its theatrical release in 1986, join us in revisiting a film that was ahead of its time and beyond time. From an overwhelming kiss in the rain to one of the best sex scenes ever put on film, DESERT HEARTS redefined what queer women could expect from our movies. The romance crackles with possibility, but its love story goes beyond this central pair — it’s also about the bonds of friendship, the challenge of family, and the importance of embracing the entirety of oneself.
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Donna Deitch.
Part of Queering the Canon: We’re Out Here
Director
Donna Deitch
Producer
Donna Deitch, Cami Taylor
Writer
Natalie Cooper
Cast
Helen Shaver, Patricia Charbonneau, Audra Lindley, Andra Akers