Donna Deitch’s pioneering LGBTQ film “Desert Hearts” is returning to the big screen. The 1986 movie, which recently received a digital restoration, will be screening at the IFC Center in New York beginning this Wednesday, July 19. Wednesday’s premiere will be followed by a Q&A with Deitch and the stars of “Desert Hearts,” Helen Shaver and Patricia Charbonneau. Women and Hollywood Founder and Publisher Melissa Silverstein will be moderating the discussion.
Based on Jane Rule’s 1964 novel “Desert of the Heart” and adapted by Natalie Cooper, “Desert Hearts” is the story of a love affair between two polar opposite women. “It’s 1959, and conservative English professor Vivian [Shaver] has come to Reno to get a divorce,” the film’s official synopsis details. “When she meets free-spirited Cay [Charbonneau], she discovers a side of herself she never knew existed.”
“Desert Hearts” took home a Special Jury Prize at the 1986 Sundance Film Festival. It is a classic of both queer and feminist cinema, and was one of the first films to positively focus on a lesbian relationship.
Deitch discussed making “Desert Hearts” in the right-leaning 1980s during a a 2015 interview. “First of all it was very, very difficult with regards to the casting,” the director recalled. “Because casting agents really advised clients not to come in and read for any of the parts. Not just for those two characters who became lovers, but for any of the parts in the film.” She explained, “It was hugely controversial and the word was that if you were even in this film, in any of the parts, it would just be destructive to your career.”
The Museum of Modern Art hosted 30th anniversary screenings of “Desert Hearts” in December 2016.
Go to the IFC Center’s website to buy tickets or find out more. You can check out the new trailer and poster for “Desert Hearts” below.
