Pepper Anne
'Blue Desert' may have had the potential to be even a half-way plausible and more enjoyable thriller had the main character, Lisa Roberts (Courtney Cox) not been so stupid. When she is the victim of another attack on the streets of New York, comic book artist Roberts moves to a small town out West. In her first days there, she meets the suspiciously crazy Randall Atkins (Craig Sheffer, playing this part well) who will eventually not leave her side. Fearing for her safety after having been in the situation already twice before, she strikes up a friendship and relationship with the suspiciously amicable town cop, Steve Smith (D.B. Sweeny, who's character does not seem convincing enough, leaving disbelief among viewers who should otherwise be convinced of the red herrings thrown by the writers). Smith needs Roberts cooperation because, as he tells her, Atkins is an ex-con and guilty of sexual assault. But, the cops have lacked the evidence to put him away before.The movie had enough ploys to at least make an interesting movie because soon enough, there is such confusion as to whom Roberts should trust. However, much of the intended suspense appears too forced because Roberts character never seems to react to simple things as we think any reasonable person might. And her delayed responses allow much of that suspense to occur to easily and unconvincingly, particularly in the finale. Perhaps Sweeny was the wrong choice for this role; too baby faced in ways that kind of recall Kevin Anderson's persona evident in his character in 'Sleeping With the Enemy.' Or, if Lisa Roberts was written as a stronger character, this might suffice as well. In the meantime, the film is not all that great, even as a low-budget B-thriller.
mack-29
This movie should win an award for dumbest female protagonist. It's hard to have any sympathy for the Cortney Cox character, Lisa, because every time she is given an opportunity to avoid a threat, she decides to remain. She has a million opportunities to leave this town and the two nuts who are threatening her, but she remains. You have to wonder if Lisa has any shred of common sense because time after time she does the exact opposite of what common sense would dictate.If being an empowered woman means staying in a mobile home in the desert in a town of strangers and continually letting strange men into your home even when you know they are dangerous and never asking your neighbors for help, then the life span of such a woman is going to be very short.Comic book artists have very tight deadlines that they must meet each month.It was amazing to see Lisa working calmly at her drawing board, pencilling, inking and lettering a complete comic while spending her days and nights being nearly raped, chased across the desert in her Chevette by a police cruiser and sticking a 5 inch knife in a police officer's thigh. All in a days work for "EMPOWERED WOMAN" I guess.
kcalahan@swbell.net
This movie really builds to a climax at the end. D B Sweeney (Memphis Belle, Superfire, Hardball, 8 Men Out, The Cutting Edge) is such an under-rated actor. This guy should be getting major movie roles!
I ordered this movie, Blue Desert, because Sweeney was in it. I was not disappointed. He plays the local law enforcement officer (Steve Smith) of a small, sleepy, boring desert town. Lisa, (Courtney Cox), a rape victim, leaves NYC to get away from that madness and settle in the desert where she will feel safer. Boy, was she wrong! She meets a weird drifter who immediately tries to take sexual advantage of her (Craig Sheffer of A River Ran Through It). So she finds out fast that this sleepy little town isn't as safe as she wishes. She turns to Steve, (D B Sweeney), who is the helpful and protective police officer. Steve is always polite, trusting, and soft spoken. Sweeney plays this role perfectly! Steve is there to help the damsel in distress.The movie twists and turns. Evidence mounts against the drifter but Sweeney can't get enough evidence to put the guy away. The drifter tells Lisa bad things about Steve and the polite and efficient Steve tells Lisa he is there to protect her and not to believe the drifter. Who to believe? After awhile Lisa doesn't know who is the bad guy and who is the good guy.
The ending is as suspenseful as you can get in a movie. Like I have said before, Sweeney is wonderful in this role. He makes this movie work as far as I am concerned because he is so believable.If you like a psycho thriller. If you like suspense. If you like Courtney Cox and if you like D.B. Sweeney, then this movie is for you. I highly recommend this sleeper of a movie. It is well worth watching.
sambuca
I first saw 'Blue Desert' by chance on a late TV show and I liked so much I rented it twice on video, although I had missed the first scenes and didn't know its title.However, every time I've talked to friends about this movie, it looks like they haven't even heard about it. And it's a shame because in my opinion this is one of the best thrillers of the decade, much better than the overrated 'Silence of the lambs' and 'Wild things', but somehow it seems that it never attracted the attention it deserved.The plot and direction are (almost) flawless, the suspense builds on from the first until the last minute and Courteney Cox makes a top-quality performance.However, I would still advise everyone to give this movie a chance because it's definitely worth it.(My Rating: 8/10)
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