Desert Hearts

Groundbreaking and ripe for rediscovery, Desert Hearts was nearly unprecedented in American film as a woman-produced, woman-directed feature depicting a positive lesbian love story. Set in 1959 and based on the beloved novel by Janice Rule, the movie centers on a repressed east coast professor (Helen Shaver) who arrives in Reno, New Mexico, for a divorce when she catches the eye of a younger, free-spirited casino worker (Patricia Charbonneau). Their burgeoning romance unfolds against the breathtaking desert landscape, enhanced by smoldering chemistry between the actresses and sumptuous cinematography by a young Robert Elswit. (96 mins., DCP)