The lake occupies the lowest elevations of the salton sink in the colorado desert of imperial and riverside counties in southern california. Fabulously offbeat and refreshingly upbeat, this lovable film gets friendly with the natives of. Narrated by john waters, plagues and pleasures on the salton sea is an odd bird wacky and poignant, funny and sobering, but this portrait of a forgotten paradise is a mustsee. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea by chris metzler. Come meet the friendly residents of californias newest environmental disaster. You cant miss the whiff as you drive along the 10 freeway in california heading to or from arizona, a strange and. The filmmakers have a good eye for the salton seas grotesque ruins and bizarre denizens. There was a time when the salton sea, tucked into the southeast corner of california, was known was the riviera of the west a premier vacation destination for the rich and famous. It was screened on april 9, 2016, at the sarasota film festival. The film itself plays sometimes like a propaganda piece to save the seaand. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea 2004 stream and.
Oct 28, 2016 watch plagues and pleasures on the salton sea movie online free download on onchannel. Chris metzler and jeff springers plagues and pleasures on the salton sea relates the unusual history of an accidental inland sea, once a mecca for recreation but now an environmental and economic sinkhole. The experimental film was shot over the course of two weekends near the salton sea in california. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea display artist. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea louis proyect. Since a large number of people bought land in the region solely as an investment, the small. While the film touches on these issues and the various efforts to protect the sea. With sonny bono, john waters, norm niver, petre melvin.
Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea popmatters. The film, the salton sea 2002, is an american crime thriller named after and partially filmed at the salton sea. Jan 17, 2020 the film, the salton sea 2002, is an american crime thriller named after and partially filmed at the salton sea. The appalling condition of the salton sea is a prediction of disasters to come. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea lisa derrick 20120109. Docuramas dvd of plagues and pleasures on the salton sea is presented in a colorful flat encoding. This awardwinning film from directors chris metzler and jeff springer details the rise and fall of the salton sea, from its heyday as the california. Rhetorical references notes human communication therefore is a symbolic action because we draw upon language and other symbols to construct a framework for understanding and valuing and to bring the wider world to others attention. Once known as the california riviera, the salton sea is now considered one of americas worst ecological disasters. Monica film center santa monica monica film center santa monica. But the pleasures portion of the title is an equally important factor in the film s tone, which has room for both scientific inquiry and.
This documentary reveals the troubled history of salton sea, which was once the site of a wonderful resort in the california desert, but soon turned into a fetid, largely abandoned area. The salton sea is a lowlife black comedy drawing inspiration from memento, pulp fiction and those trendy british thrillers about drug lads. Even with all these oddities, the film succeeds in portraying a highly likeable. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea 2004 plagues. In fact, upon watching this film i recognized some of the dilapidated architecture from werner herzogs sciencefictiondocudrama the wild blue yonder, in which the ruins doubled as an abandoned town built by an alien civilization. The salton sea is a shallow, saline, endorheic rift lake located directly on the san andreas fault, predominantly in californias imperial valley. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea 2004 stream. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea offers an offbeat portrait of the people who populate the shores of the once california riviera, which is now considered one of americas worst ecological. The salton sea is a 2016 american guerrilla film written by veena sud, an avant garde crime thriller starring jamie anne allman and diarra kilpatrick. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea filed under. Renowned cult film director john waters narrates this quirky exploration of the salton sea, the massive southern california lake that was created by accident a century ago, became a popular desert. The actual sea, which is 35 miles long and 15 miles wide and was created by accident in californias imperial valley by a diversion of the colorado river, briefly flourished as a resort area from the 50s to the 70s until massive flooding and the. Fabulously offbeat and refreshingly upbeat, this lovable film gets friendly with the natives of the salton sea an inland ocean of massive fish kills, rotting resorts, and 120 degree nights located just minutes from urban southern california.
One audio commentary offers the filmmakers selfevaluation and a second track pairs two of the salton sea locals, norm niver and steve horvitz. An offbeat environmental documentary about the people who have carved out their own slice of paradise on the shores of californias newest ecological disaster. This film is enlightening, enchanting, and thought provoking, one i will watch over and over. The 2006 documentary film plagues and pleasures on the salton sea narrated by john waters documents the lives of the inhabitants of bombay beach, niland, and salton city, as well as the ecological issues associated with the sea. Renowned cult film director john waters narrates this quirky exploration of the salton sea, the massive southern california lake that was created by accident a century ago, became a popular desert resort and has since developed into a refuge for a community of oddballs. John waters narrates this quirky documentary about southern californias salton sea, a manmade lake that was once considered a prime. Currently, its surface is 226 ft 69 m below sea level. A brief history of the bizarre creation of californias salton sea.
At first plagues and pleasures on the salton sea had me feeling a little hesitant. Sep 08, 2007 plagues and pleasures on the salton sea filed under. Focus world is proud to bring you bombay beach, winner of the best documentary prize at the 2011 tribeca film festival. Released september 19th, 2004, plagues and pleasures on the salton sea stars john waters the movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 26 min, and received a score of 72 out of 100 on metacritic. Nov 29, 2007 plagues and pleasures on the salton sea display artist.
Feb 04, 2014 renowned cult film director john waters narrates this quirky exploration of the salton sea, the massive southern california lake that was created by accident a century ago, became a popular desert. Newhall under construction newhall under construction. Since a large number of people bought land in the region solely as an investment, the small towns surrounding the salton sea. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea penetrates the sadness and inertia of the local residents who still try to make their livelihood in and around this monumental manmade blemish, which was once a gem. Caruso the salton sea 2016 film, starring jamie anne allman, was directed by veena sud. Narrated by legendary counterculture filmmaker john waters, the film. Plagues and pleasures on the salton sea promo season 2. Today its considered one of americas worst ecological disasters. Renowned cult film director john waters narrates this quirky exploration of the salton sea, the massive southern california lake that was created by accident a century ago, became a popular desert resort and has since developed into a refuge for a community of. The film delivers information about the manmade seas past, present, and a glimpse at what may lie in the future. From beneath the hard facts emerges a sobering lesson.
I recently watched plagues and pleasures on the salton sea at the 1st annual ellensburg film festival and i thought that the documentary was made with great success. The film delivers information about the manmade sea s past, present, and a glimpse at what may lie in the future. The movie in my opinion is a study in the mechanisms of hope, hubris, folly, and illusion. Renowned cult film director john waters narrates this quirky exploration of the salton sea, the massive southern california lake that was created by accident a.
89 1003 1302 134 78 1085 1515 73 1507 633 212 712 502 700 1517 962 76 804 538 197 151 58 698 1336 981 701 25 872 272 1336 445 1484 405 183 617 95 215