2024 the best lesbian movies review
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When college professor Vivian Bell (Helen Shaver) arrives in Reno in 1959 to get a quickie divorce, the last thing on her mind is romance. A prim intellectual, crippled by a sterile marriage ("We're a professional couple") and hiding behind her education, she moves into a ranch belonging to Frances Parker (Audra Lindley) and tries to keep to herself. But Parker's beautiful, sassy tomboy of a stepdaughter proves to be quite a distraction, and a love affair slowly blossoms. Cay (Patricia Charbonneau) refuses to be bound by convention or by expectations of how a nice girl should behave, and her devil-may-care attitude both attracts and terrifies the nervous professor. Shaver is terrific as Vivian, and the slow thawing of her character is beautifully paced--you can feel the tension break when she finally lets down her guard. Another strong performance comes from Audra Lindley as Frances. She's a tough old bird with a drinking problem, but Lindley keeps the character from descending into stereotype, and she gives full rein to the tragic side of this lonely woman, especially as she struggles with her reaction to the developing relationship between Cay and Vivian. There are scenes in "Desert Hearts" that would be painfully clich?d if they appeared in a heterosexual romance, and even here they only just escape that fate--relying a little too much on significant glances and lines that just don't sound like real conversation. Nevertheless, first-time director Deitch breathes new life into a standard straight-arrow-meets-free-spirit plot, and steadfastly refuses to turn this love story into an "issues movie." Add to that a strong feel for the period and a soundtrack filled with the likes of Patsy Cline and Gene Vincent, and the result is a warm, well-acted film that packs a real emotional punch. "--Simon Leake"
Aspect Ratio : 1.85:1
Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
MPAA rating : R (Restricted)
Package Dimensions : 7.48 x 5.35 x 0.59 inches; 2.88 ounces
Director : Donna Deitch
Media Format : DVD, Letterboxed, Widescreen, Color, NTSC, Closed-captioned
Run time : 1 hour and 36 minutes
Release date : January 31, 2006
Actors : Helen Shaver, Patricia Charbonneau, Audra Lindley, Andra Akers, Dean Butler
Subtitles: : Spanish, French
Language : English (Dolby Digital 2.0)
Studio : MGM (Video & DVD)
ASIN : B000053VAU
Writers : Jane Rule, Natalie Cooper
Number of discs : 1
Reviewer: Vladika Ioan
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Still the Best!!!!
Review: I've seen many lesbian-themed movies over the years and "Desert Hearts" is simply the best, even 14 years after the first time I saw it. Patricia Charbonneau is absolutely delicious as the wild-spirited and honest Cay Rivvers while Helen Shaver gives a powerful performance as the soon-to-be-divorced Vivian Bell. When Vivian arrives in Reno to get a divorce in 1959, she finds her world turned topsy-turvy when she meets the free-spirited Cay.Audra Lindley (Three's Company) turns in a great performance as Cay's stepmother, Frances, a woman who seems to be trying to come to terms with Cay's attraction to women but ultimately cannot, especially when Cay finds "someone who counts". Surprisingly, I found myself sympathetic with her situation, even though I am a lesbian. Here she takes in her lover's daughter and raises her, only to find that she is "different". It becomes apparent fairly early on, that Frances is lonely and afraid to let go, no matter how healthy that letting go would ultimately be. There is a touching scene where Cay and Frances talk about her staying and even moving east with Frances.Instead of some story where the heroines go to bed early on, the relationship builds slowly. Donna Deitch develops the romantic tension between Cay and Vivian, building towards an absolutely exquisite lovemaking scene when Cay visits Vivian in her hotel room after Vivian is forced by circumstances to move from the dude ranch to town. You can see that Cay is quickly attracted to Vivian, but Vivian takes quite a bit longer to come out of her shell.Silver, Cay's straight friend, and her fiance, Joe, are just super as emotional and moral support for Cay, and, ultimately for her love for Vivian. Also, Silver has a great voice--I'm not a huge fan of country music, but her song, "Someone to Love", sung at the engagement party for Joe and her, is fabulous. That song alone would be justification for a soundtrack--too bad one was never made. You can see the love Silver and Joe have for one another, but, perhaps because of it, they can accept Cay's lesbianism, and later, support for Vivian and her. Given that homophobia was even worse in 1959 than now, it was refreshing to see straight people who could treat a lesbian just as they would treat any friend.The music is great and it, along with the costumes, are accurate to the time (I'm old enough to accurately remember the period first hand). The songs are hits of the time, done by such greats as Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, Patti Page, Johnny Ray, and Elvis Presley, amongst others. Music is important in setting the mood and a sense of the time in which a film is supposed to take place. The music of "Desert Hearts" does this admirably--it took me right back to that time."Desert Hearts" is a groundmark movie--to the best of my knowledge, it is the first time that an explicit lesbian lovemaking scene is shown. However, it is tender rather than excessively graphic. This is one film I can highly recommend.
Reviewer: A
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Timeless
Review: "You deserve to live somewhere with, or near, someone who sees how wonderful you are-- for exactly who you are."Desert Hearts is painfully, unfairly overlooked. Some people mind find it cliche or slow, looking back on the last 40 years of LGBT cinema, but remember that Desert Hearts was one of the very first. Imagine seeing it without decades of comparison. When the protagonist, Vivian, speaks the line above, she's facing the camera, speaking not only to her companion, but to the audience as well.This film is 6 years older than I am, but rings so true that I know I would not have come out yet if not for it. I spent years in the closet, consuming LGBT media in secret and never really connecting with it. When I finally got around to Desert Hearts, it was almost like meeting myself. I never really identified with a character in the way I identified with Vivian. I found myself watching it over and over, feeling more at home than ever.Regarding this specific product, the director's commentary and extras were totally worth the cost. I also didn't own a DVD player, so it was also worth purchasing one just to watch these DVDs. The quality is as expected for the year.
Reviewer: Yaneechay
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: My Favorite Film
Review: I bought the DVD years ago but decided to upgrade to this delux edition from the Criterion Collection with lots of extras. Havenât watched it yet but plan to soon.Favorite line: âLots of ice tea and no deep thinkinââ. Beautiful love story with charming and quirky characters. The director has a cameo playing at a slot machine and says in a foreign accent to Cay: âIf you donât play, you canât win.â Love this movie!
Reviewer: Miriam English
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: The loveliest lesbian story I've yet seen.
Review: I first saw this movie decades ago and have often asked if I can order it in video shops, without much luck. I am rapt that I now own a copy. This anniversary edition comes with extra features (director's commentary, interviews of the two main stars, and a photo gallery). Although I was surprised that it didn't include more, it doesn't diminish even slightly the joy I feel at finally owning a copy of this lovely movie and at being able to make a small contribution toward Donna Deutch's further work. I believe she intends to make a follow-up movie to Desert Hearts.This is a movie that all lesbians should own. The story is charming, the acting, directing, and other production values make it one of the very best lesbian-themed movies ever made. Treat yourself. It costs less than a couple of coffees at a cafe and will keep you energised for years.I should add that it is based upon the novel "Desert of the Heart" by Jane Rule. I have owned a copy of the book since I first saw the movie all those years ago. Hmmm... it is about time I read it again.
Reviewer: L. Bushfield
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: This is a very stylish retro movie with all actors and actresses doing a great job. I fast forwarded through the graphic lesbian sex. The retro music is absolutely great. Very beautifully photographed. Costumes are marvellous. Listening to the directors comments was good and bad. Movie is better probably if you don't listen to the directors comments. It destroys some of the romance of the movie. I highly recommend this dvd.
Reviewer: sandrawilkes
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: i liked this film its what i call a slow burner. but the ending is lovely. reccomend this to all
Reviewer: Dali
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Klassieker!
Reviewer: koum
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: J'adore ce film mais je regrette cet achat car c'est en vo pas de sous titres francais. Donc pour l histoire oui pour ce dvd non
Reviewer: Lyn Boundy
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Love the movie