Customer Reviews

Desert Bloom

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Sensitively told coming-of-age film set against Las Vegas and the early years of atomic testing. Rose (Annabeth Gish) is thirteen and very much wants to connect with stepdad Jack (Jon Voight), an alcoholic WWII veteran still possessed by the demons of combat. Trouble is, she's operating on one track, while he's operating on two, such that just when they seem at last to converge, he goes off on a delusionary binge. Movie is notable for the exceptionally fine performances of these two actors. Gish, tottering atop two gawky legs and peering out from the cosmetic curse of horned-rim glasses, is the very real, aching embodiment of adolescent angst. Hers has to be one of the finest, least mannered renderings of teen-age yearning and self-doubt in many, many years, and made even me, a hardened old curmudgeon, feel kindly toward the hopelessly pubescent. Voight's character is less sympathetic and more complex. Victimized by the evils of war and beset by alcohol and impotence, he's having trouble with his masculinity in a house full of women. He wants to fulflill a positive role for his wife and stepdaughters, but the inner turmoil keeps erupting unpredictably.You want Jack and Rose to connect, to heal one another's emotional wounds, but circumstance is against them. Movie leaves off on suitably ambiguous note as atomic test parallels emotional family blowup. We know time will take care of Rose's problems, but what of Jack. Film is not so much about dysfunction as it is about adolescence and the walking wounds of war, such that you'll remember the characters long after the various plot complications have subsided. What a fine piece of non-commercial movie making this is thanks to Sundance Productions and writer-director Eugene Corr. Their work along with that of the entire cast shows once again why "the obscure little movie with something to say" continues to be one of our finest film traditions.

If you are a Jon Voight fan, this is a must-see movie. Having grownup in one of America's few functional families, I found it hard to relate to. However I have watched it with others that were blown away by its mirror image of real life in an abusive household.

I appreciated the film for exercising restraint in the acting and not going over- the-top. It could have been so easy to do. This is due to the chemistry and fine acting of the cast. Different people I watched it with have their favorites. For me, Voight really stands out which is incredible as the entire cast should have won awards.

Don't expect this movie to be light fare on a boring Saturday afternoon. It will stick with you for awhile. The story builds like a slow burn and will leave some scars.

I hope you find my opinion helpful.

Michael L. Gooch
Author of Wingtips with Spurs.

Annabeth Gish gives a great performance as a young girl struggling to understand her life growing up in 1950's Las Vegas. Her mother is trying to keep their family together through some pretty hard times. The town is under constant threat of the A-Bomb. Rose's (Gish) stepfather is an alcoholic struggling with the demons of war. The story is great and I think many families with veterans can identify.

I thought it was interesting how the movie seemed to show how, while "proper" America was trying to look like we have it all together, there is chaos and disintegration going on everywhere; I thought an especially telling scene for that depiction was when Rose was trying to run away, and the stepdad was sitting with his gun looking ready to break down, while proper, respectable-looking people were in the house, playing the piano and singing.
I told my husband that I could swear that the narrator was Christine Lahti; I finally found that that was true on the Internet Movie Database site; it was listed on her movie credits as an uncredited narrator for the movie Desert Bloom.

A powerful and heartbreaking portrayal of what it is like to walk on egg shells in a household inhabited by an alcoholic husband and father.

The story deftly renders the awkward and secretive moral climate around alcohol, sex, and infidelity in post- WWII America. Unflinching in his lack of sensitivity, John Voight nonetheless succeeds in winning a kind of sad sympathy for his post-combat nightmares and his tortured reality. Jo Beth Williams, Annabeth Gish, and Ellen Barkin give outstandingly moving performances that could only be described as remarkable. John Garfield gives a subtle and important performance in a wonderful supporting roll.

This film was one of those sleepers that came out of left field, and knocked me down! It is a noteworthy American film, tragic, touching, and ultimately triumphant. It is truly unforgettable.

This is a very good movie about growing up in a disfunctional family. It shows that things can happen and that hope was not given up. Annabeth gish shows early on in her career that she will become a great actress. Also stars Ellen Barkin as her drunken down-on-luck aunt. Also see Radio Flyer. Coming of age film.

I think this movie was extremely good. Great acting by Annabeth Gish and Jon Voight. Having this movie be Annabeth's first big screen. About a troubled father who got hurt in the war and abuses his oldest step-daughter. A compeling story of protecting yourself, and love, and betraying the people you love.

Set near Las Vegas in 1950, this is a coming-of-age movie about a 13-year-old girl as she tries to deal with the turbulence in her family in the form mainly of her alcoholic stepfather (Jon Voight). An aunt is living with them for 42 days in order to fulfill the residency requirement to get a quicky divorce. The girl catches Voight and the aunt in an embrace one day, and bolts out. Voight finds her near a nuclear test site. The story is quite intelligent and compelling. The movie has strong character development, though some of the conflict is still fuzzy and unresolved.

Jon Voight is the stepfather with a drinking problem and a bad temper. Annabeth Gish plays his oldest stepdaughter who wants very much to be accepted by him. He is constantly badgering them about the A-bomb tests about to commence in the desert near Las Vegas. I just saw this movie on HBO.