Red Dirt [DVD]

As a straight male who has enjoyed the campy work of horror actress Karen Black for several years, I purchased this film simply to watch her performance as the emotionally troubled guardian/aunt of the young man whose story is told in "Red Dirt." In a role that I at first thought more suitable for Jessica Lange, Karen Black turned in an Oscar-caliber performance. I was utterly stunned by the breadth and depth that she brought to the complex character she played.As I sat in front of my TV set, I suddenly found I was no longer watching the movie with the sole intention of focusing on Ms. Black. I discovered I was completely engrossed in this deeply moving tale about a young man who, without fully understanding why, is trying to find himself a place in the world where he can find love, inner peace and fulfillment. He longs to leave the red dirt farm he shares with his aunt, believing the key to his heart's desires lies elsewhere. Even the sexual relationship he is carrying on with his female cousin no longer fills the void gnawing at him.Shortly after the young man posts a "For Rent" sign for a adjoining guest house on the property, a drifter comes along and moves in. Having no male figures in his life, the young man quickly forms a friendship with the stranger. We learn that the stranger is a free-spirited man who has uprooted his own life in order to find the very things that our young hero yearns for. This commonality allows the two men to become best friends.Soon, the two men talk about leaving the farm to explore the "world beyond the farm" together. But the young man is conflicted by thoughts of leaving his aunt alone and his cousin behind.His aunt is somewhat dismayed that her nephew would form such a close bond with the stranger so quickly, but she does not wish to hold him back. His cousin, on the other hand, is first to suspect that the young man's attraction toward the stranger goes beyond that of "best friends." When she brings this to his attention, he is just as shocked and dismayed.What follows, I will not reveal here. But I will admit, with a red face, that I found myself rooting for the two men to openly acknowledge their love for each other. I have never felt comfortable watching two men kiss, but I was hoping they would eventually--even though it would have made me more comfortable to believe the men's relationship was nothing more than a deeply loving friendship between two people who happened to be of the same sex.Despite my narrow-mindedness, this film did not make me squirm in my seat. Rather, I was deeply touched and, on some level, I learned a powerful lesson: Love, when it is real, truly should have no boundaries.Profound and multi-layered story-telling at its finest. The DVD presentation is flawless in video and sound.

I'll admit that I only watched this movie when Amazon marketed it to me (probably because I've bought a gay-themed movie sometime within the past decade). But then, I was glad that it was brought to my attention."Red Dirt" escaped my radar. Was it even released in the mainstream? Probably not "big screen," but was it even released in indie houses? Anyway, this movie tells the tale of Griffith, who seems to amble about aimlessly through life with some sense of obligation toward his aunt and no way to release his sexual urges except with his only-too-willing cousin. Why do southern-themed movies always seem to be so steeped in social obligation and the concomitant suffocation and angst?The wonderful scenery and excellent directing job, and empathetic characters (some outstanding, though not superb, acting talent) truly bring you into a mythical world somewhere in the south (I forget where). The story line is somewhere crossed between "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "The Lords of Discipline": drifter (Lee Todd) comes by and "befriends" Griffith, who is so mired in his tragic existence on the family farm that it's difficult to tell if his relationship with Lee Todd is based on sheer boredom with his own existence than with some true feeling underlying homosexual tension, as we're led to believe.As far as a "gay interest" film (kinda), though, this film is refreshing. Gay politics and stereotypes do not play into the film at all. The characters are remarkably empathetic, and you somehow feel Griffith's pain. The line is blurred, however, between the "male bonding friendship" between the two men and homosexual love, a distinction the movie would have done well to explore. Could these two men not have formed a tight, close friendship -- even loved each other -- without being "in love"?I suppose the end of the film, therefore, is not only reasonable, but a better resolution than if the two had ridden off into the sunset holding hands. Maybe the two will cross paths again at some other point in time. But maybe not.The movie is definitely worth the viewing, but not unless you're willing to invest some thought and even some heart.

It's like Somerset Maugham for the New Millenium crowd. Karen Black gives the performance of a lifetime in this southern drama rife with cicadas and insufferable heat. Definitely add this one to your collection.

J'ai adoré, sûrement parce que j'ai réussi à m'identifier ! question de point de vue, évidemment mais le jeu des acteurs est excellent surtout le protagoniste (Dan Montgomery) ! de magnifiques images, une histoire intéressante, un voyage à la découverte de soi et de l'amour ! l'atmosphère est pesante et tout est bien construit à mon goût ! questionde goût, car les crtiques que j'ai lues n'étaient pas vraiment bonnesseul regret : pas de véritables bonus (commentaires, scènes inédites...)avertissement : réservé à un public averti avec bon niveau d'anglais car aucun sous-titrage, ni en français ni en anglaisbonne séance

c film ai tres bien agencer bonne histoire mais dommage k le film n soit pas sous titrer comme la plupart des films.

Red Dirt is a film that will not appeal to all tastes, it should be said: it is very slow and really not a lot happens. But it does have a potent, somewhat lugubrious atmosphere and is one of a kind, even though it bears some resemblance to the Tennessee Williams kind of dramas focusing on the Deep South. It seems to have been made on a very limited budget but Tag Purvis makes a virtue of this by using it to up the sense of claustrophobia - we never see a scene in the local town even except in the draper's shop, with the result that it is as if the world has been abandoned except for these few characters in the lazy summer heat. The dialogues tend to the arch but the film just about manages to pull this off. It's really about the hold of the past and the difficulty of breaking free, and the characters exist in a kind of paralysis except for the newcomer. The two men provide an appealing gay pull to the film and act well, as does the female cousin with whom one of them is caught up in a stifling sexual relationship which is - and feels - too close to home. But the real high point of the film is Karen Black's rather superb performance as a woman on the edge of complete neurosis and overwhelmed by guilt about the past. Her fragility and expressiveness make for a compelling viewing experience in every scene she is in. It is also well filmed, largely in close-up, keeping the characters trapped within the frame with a sense of deep colours and fabrics, or an almost overripe nature and hazy cornfields.

This film tells the story of a young guy who lives in the deep south, and his friendship with a local girl and the Aunt that he lives with. His hidden desires are woken when a drifter comes to stay on the plantation in a recently done up cabin. It is alittle slow in places, but worth sticking with, the film also neglects to give you the presumed happy ending. After all I guess it is trying to portray real life and not the fantasy we would all like it to have been. But that for me is what makes it a good film. Telling it how it is and not how it shold have been.Red Dirt is a good little film to add to anyones collection. If only for Karen Black, whose portayl of the nutty Aunt is quite good. Anyway if you have read this far I suggest that you buy it and see for yourself what Red Dirt has to offer.