A Desert, written and directed by Joshua Erkman and co-written by Bossi Baker, stars Kai Lennox as Alex. The worn-out photographer is on a quest to recapture the magic that inspired his first book, the one that put him on the map… 20 years ago. To that end, he left his cell at home with his wife, Sam (Sarah Lind), and is not using a GPS to navigate. Alex is just wandering the desert at random, grabbing shots with his 8×13 camera that wow him.
That isn’t to imply no one knows where Alex is. He calls Sam from the hotel phone every night, and if she doesn’t answer, he leaves a rambling voicemail. At this hotel, the folks next to him are the loud Renny (Zachary Ray Sherman) and his “sister,” Susie Q (Ashley Smith). After making quite the raucous, the “siblings” come over with a peace offering of booze. After a night of heavy drinking, Alex seems to disappear, but the cops won’t listen to his concerned wife. To that end, Sam hires washed-up private investigator Harold (David Yow) to find out what happened to Alex. Unbeknownst to Sam, this puts Alex, Harold, and her on a path full of danger.
A Desert doesn’t dive into what Renny, Susie Q, and The Director (Rob Zebrecky) hope to gain from their misdeeds, so whatever point the ending is making feels muddled. But this is more of a journey into the dark underbelly of Americana for the three protagonists. On that front, the narrative works well. Alex is likable and interesting. Harold’s broken and disgraced, marking an interesting contrast to the poverty-stricken but wild ways of Renny and company. Sam’s frustrated that her husband’s career isn’t bringing money in anymore, but she loves him and wants him to be safe. This trio is engaging, and it makes sense that their trajectories, while different, take them to the same place.
“…Sam hires washed-up private investigator Harold to find out what happened to Alex.”
Lennox projects a passion for photography that makes his digital free odyssey make sense. Sherman is terrifying yet still oddly charming. Smith makes it clear that her character just wants a way to a better life. Yow embodies the broken and thoughtless yet determined nature of the investigator. But Lind steals the show. If The Humanity Bureau didn’t make her a star, can this be that vehicle for her? She fearlessly dives into every emotion imaginable, from guilt to wariness to frustration to recklessness (yeah, not an emotion, but the point remains) with ease. It is an incredible performance that helps gloss over the lack of specificity in the script.
Erkman directs with confidence, amping up the tension and sense of danger as things progress. While the exact “what” remains unclear, the third act climax is staged in a way that makes it exciting and crazy. The cinematography by Jay Keitel makes each landscape vista beautiful and unsettling at the same time.
A Desert is a solid neo-noir with excellent visuals, good characterizations, and fantastic acting. The story needs more to it for whatever point the filmmaker is trying to make to be fully realized. Still, it is a good and interesting feature-length debut that shows a lot of promise for bigger and better things to come.
For more information, visit the official A Desert page.
"…shows a lot of promise for bigger and better things to come."
