3 Nights in the Desert

source: 3 Nights in the Desert

Three adults agree to get together on their thirtieth birthday (all born the same week). They were part of a band back in college. Anna (Amber Tamblyn) is currently a singer who is big in Asia and Europe. Barry (Vincent Piazza) has become a success tax attorney. He is "pathologically honest" and removes all his clothes and neatly folds them while sitting on the throne. Travis (Wes Bentley) who has the scars and limp from some sort of accident later explained, hasn't moved on and dreams of cutting an album. During the stay old wounds are opened and some bonds and made and broken and remade. It was a story of little action and much drama about finding yourself, whatever that is. Indie style entertainment. Heavy drama. Folk music soundtrack. Guide: F-bomb. Sex. No nudity.

An intense movie about the paths we choose in life. I can say that I've watched this movie with no expectations at all, but I ended loving it. I like the way the story works, three actors, three nights and nothing more, and it feels suffocating in times because all of the tension between them. I really like the script and the acting was well, and I really enjoyed the music. I think the key to watch this movie is no expecting anything about it, maybe its surprised you and maybe you like it at the end.

Everything is off with this movie. Its meant to be about old band members. None of the three actors / characters look like they would ever have played in a band. There is a cave with nothing in it. A dude that looks like a serial killer, a girl that cant sing and a dude that likes to whack off and go running (not specifically in that order).Oh, and a couple of analogies about going for the shiny marble, and trying to * over a golden cube. Sound good?

We grow up. We change. And yet we often want our friends to stay the same. Or better yet, to make up for how they may have hurt us a long time ago. Sometimes we get that, sometimes we don't, and sometimes the fiercest, most passionate friendships come to blows. 3 Days in the Desert is a heartfelt story about those sorts of relationships, and how we try to make them better, but maybe learn something about who we are in the process. It's at times funny, but mostly appropriately sensitive and rueful about a lost friendship that could be rekindled. The writing is terrific, the cinematography is gorgeous and Wes Bentley and Amber Tamblyn shimmer in their roles. Believable but also magnetic. The other character, Barry, could have been softened in a lot of ways, but I find it really interesting that he wasn't. Can we be generous to the person whose dream changed along the way? Can we forgive the friend who broke our heart? This movie gives you a lot to think about. Watch it and then call an old friend. They want to hear from you too, I bet.

I multi-task, so I was busy while watching this. I can understand why someone wouldn't like this - it is slow. It's one of those 'day-in-the-life-of' movies. Watching it as a side distraction though, the story unfolded. It was an interesting perspective of friends coming back together after they've made their way out into the world. There's the successful one, the one that got an acceptable job and life, and the drop out. Success isn't all it's made out to be, a drab career can be satisfying, and dropping out may be an honest approach. Or, maybe there is no clear path.. Worth at least the 5.5 it has.

Sort of a strange story about three friends, who haven't seen each other in a long time, meeting at the home of the one who has chosen to be a recluse way out in the desert. As the story progress you learn they shared an interest in breaking into the music industry as a 'band' - but it never came to pass - and all three friends have gone in separate directions. Travis is the desert recluse, Anna and Barry have pursued professional lives and have joined the society as responsible members. Travis has a real problem with this. He rejected society for the solitude of the desert and his own thoughts. In my opinion Travis makes it clear that he was physically attracted to both Anna and Barry. Travis knows he cannot cross this barrier with either Barry or Anna. Barry and Anna had their own thing and Travis was always the third wheel. So to sum up this rather forgettable movie - Travis instigated this reunion to tell his two friends (and in a very abstract psychotic way) that he is going to kill himself. What are the clues? 1. Travis takes them to that mystery cave. 2. Travis disappears one night. 3. Travis sends Barry & Anna off to go home in his truck, without Travis. 4. As the story ends Travis is seen going into the cave - now his crypt! The end. This movie is only firing on 3 cylinders and never gets to the point.

It wasn't the acting that bothered me at all. I thought the acting was pretty good. The entire concept of this movie, the world we live in, and how it shatters our dreams is what tormented me about this film. I respected the work that went into it enough to finish watching but after I was done I felt like I needed to forget all about it and never watch it again. Why is that? There are people in this world who say they are going to do something and follow through with their actions. There are people in this world who try something a few times, then quit, and just let life take them as they drift away into a meaningless existence. I felt like this movie was trying to teach me to go drift away into a meaningless existence. It is a very depressing, cold hard dose of reality that shows us how most younger musicians view themselves today. They feel their talents aren't important enough to make a living out of it so they go end up doing some job that they hate and stay miserable. To sum it up take three former band mates, put them out in the middle of nowhere, and let them drink until they feel better about giving up on their instruments. I wasn't sold. By the end of the movie I wanted to go write myself a masterpiece and I was not going to let the movie defeat me.

Absoluetly awful! i don't know who they paid to get a 7.0 rating on IMDb. Three lousy actors, sleepwalking through an awful movie. Terribly written, badly directed, badly acted. I can go on and on... All you have to do is to to YouTube and look this movie's trailer. Those were the most painful 2 minutes of my life. Tag line:"THE BIG CHILL meets THE GRADUATE." Really? You should be so lucky as to do a "THE BIG CHILL meets THE GRADUATE." Nothing like the Big Chill and nothing like The Graduate. Using that tag line is an insult to the creators of those masterpieces. Just by attempting to link yourself to the likes of Larry Kasdan and Mike Nichols does not make you a "filmmaker." Viewers: Don't waste your time. Don't be impressed by the fake credentials. Don't believe the hype. Go watch cat videos on YouTube instead.

3 Nights in the Desert