Passion in the Desert (1997)

Young French officer Augustin Robert escorts artist Jean-Michel Venture de Paradis to Egypt during Napoleon's Egyptian campaign. Napoleon sent de Paradis to record Egypt's great monuments ... See full summary »

Director:

Lavinia Currier

Writers:

Honoré de Balzac (story) (as Honoré De Balzac), Lavinia Currier (screenplay)

Stars:

Ben Daniels, Michel Piccoli, Paul M. Meston

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ben Daniels	...	Augustin Robert
Michel Piccoli	...	Jean-Michel Venture de Paradis
Paul M. Meston	...	Grognard (as Paul Meston)
Kenneth Collard	...	Officer
Nadia Odeh	...	Bedouin Bride
Auda Mohammed Badoul	...	Shepherd Boy
Mohammed Ali	...	Medicine Man
Habis Hussein	...	Bedouin
Tasheen Kwalda	...	Bedouin
Ismael Al-Hamd	...	Bedouin
James Peck	...	Soldier
Nicolas Sagalle	...	Soldier
Abdul Latif Salazar	...	Soldier

Storyline

Young French officer Augustin Robert escorts artist Jean-Michel Venture de Paradis to Egypt during Napoleon's Egyptian campaign. Napoleon sent de Paradis to record Egypt's great monuments and temples that are destroyed by French soldiers in acts of barbarism. During combat, Augustin and Jean-Michel are separated from their regiment, and they start wandering through the desert fighting for their life. In one of the canyons Augustin meets a leopard he names Simoom and a strange bond between them appears.

---

Plot Keywords:

rescued by an animal | hunt | french | sahara desert | napoleonic war | 

---

Taglines:

What nature divides, the spirit unites.

---

Genres:

Adventure | Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence including some depictions of barbarism, and for nudity

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film is one of the several PG-13 rated films that have full frontal nudity. Others include The Woman in Red (1984), Nell (1994), Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde (1995), Bacterium (2006), and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007).

---

Goofs

The French soldiers fire a cannon at the sphinx. An explosion is shown with a shower of stone and dust from the face of the sphinx. 2 minutes later, Venture is shown drawing with the sphinx behind him visible and intact.

---

Quotes

Augustin Robert: You can't get lost in Egypt; there's The Nile, and there's the sea.

---

Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Armageddon/Henry Fool/Gone with the Wind/Buffalo '66/Passion in the Desert/Nights in Cabiria (1998)

---

Soundtracks

Ollin Aragreed
Music by Hamza El Din

User Reviews

Like a stranger, kinkier "English Patient"

A film about the relationship between a man and leopard that's very reminiscent of "The English Patient," even down to a scene similar to when Ralph Fiennes' character carries the body of his lover across a desert-rock cliff. In "A Passion in the Desert," the main character carries the body of the leopard across a desert-rock cliff but in the opposite direction (calculated decision or unconscious contrast?). Historically expanded from a very short Balzac story, the film is not perfect but a treat no less. Final shot will haunt me for weeks. (8 of 10)

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 June 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Simoom

Filming Locations:

Moab, Utah, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$250,897

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$250,897

Company Credits

Production Co:

Roland-Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1