Fresh
It makes for a strange, but somewhat endearing, melange of the grim and comic.
Mark Feeney, Boston Globe
Plagues & Pleasures On the Salton Sea
2004 · 1h 14m · N/A
Documentary
Directed by
Chris Metzler
,
Jeff Springer
Overview
Fabulously offbeat and refreshingly upbeat, this lovable film gets friendly with the natives of the Salton Sea an inland ocean of massive fish kills, rotting resorts, and 120 degree nights located just minutes from urban Southern California. This award-winning film from directors Chris Metzler and Jeff Springer details the rise and fall of the Salton Sea, from its heyday as the "California Riviera" where boaters and Beach Boys mingled in paradise to its present state of decaying, forgotten ecological disaster. From wonderland to wasteland, PLAGUES & PLEASURES ON THE SALTON SEA captures a place far more interesting than the shopping malls and parking lots of suburban America, a wacky world where a beer-swilling Hungarian Revolutionary, a geriatric nudist, and a religious zealot building a monument to God all find solace and community.
Director and cast
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
96%
Tomatometer
Fresh
The movie is engaging for the way it documents the rise and fall of a semi-natural landmark, and especially for the way it shows how people still come to California to remake themselves.
Noel Murray, AV Club
Fresh
Plagues and Pleasures is simultaneously fun and creepy, best appreciated by those who enjoy similar profiles of Detroit's crumbling grandeur.
John Monaghan, Detroit Free Press
Fresh
Narrated with morbid relish by John Waters, this witty doc chronicles the rise and ruination of the Salton Sea, a tiny inland ocean once promoted as 'California's Riviera' but now a festering, apocalyptically hideous ecological disaster zone.
Cliff Doerksen, Time Out New York
Fresh
As documentary subjects go, the Salton Sea was ripe for the plucking: This man-made phenomenon is one of the weirdest stories of the West.
Robert Horton, Film.com
More films
The Lorax (2012)
Animation · Family · PG
A 12-year-old boy searches for the one thing that will enable him to win the affection of the girl of his dreams. To find it he must discover the story of the Lorax, the grumpy yet charming creature who fights to protect his world.
- Runtime
- 1h 26m
- Director
- Kyle Balda, Chris Renaud
- Cast
- Danny DeVito, Zac Efron, Ed Helms
IMDb
6.4
Metacritic
46
Banana (2010)
Animation · Comedy · Family · N/A
The Minions fight over a delicious banana... but is that all they want?!
- Runtime
- 4m
- Director
- Kyle Balda, Samuel Tourneux
- Cast
- Pierre Coffin
IMDb
7.6
Home Makeover (2010)
Animation · Comedy · Family · N/A
When a social worker visits Gru’s house to assess its suitability for children, chaos ensues. Margo, Edith, and Agnes, along with the ever-mischievous Minions, scramble to give the home a makeover in record time. Their attempts to create a warm and inviting environment quickly spiral into hilarity as the Minions’ unorthodox methods lea...
- Runtime
- 5m
- Director
- Kyle Balda, Samuel Tourneux
- Cast
- Miranda Cosgrove, Dana Gaier, Elsie Kate Fisher
IMDb
7.1
Orientation Day (2010)
Animation · Comedy · Family · N/A
The Minions embark on their first day of work, eager to prove themselves in their new roles. After watching a hilariously outdated 'Initiation Video,' three rookie Minions take on bomb-carrying duty. Predictably, their enthusiasm quickly spirals into chaos as they bungle the simplest of tasks. Packed with slapstick comedy and the Minio...
- Runtime
- 4m
- Director
- Kyle Balda, Samuel Tourneux
- Cast
- Pierre Coffin, Rob Huebel
IMDb
6.8
Gru, mi villano favorito presenta: La locura de los minions (2010)
Animation · Comedy
Comments
Talk about the film with other members