Plagues and Pleasures on the Salton Sea
Tilapia Film | Release Date: April 20, 2007 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
72
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 8 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
This is a startlingly funny portrait of Gothic Americana. Read full review
80
Film ThreatEric Campos
Plagues & Pleasures is kinda like one of those travel videos, except it's offering you a vacation like you've never had before and it's not loaded with bulls---. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleJohn McMurtrie
To their credit, directors Chris Metzler and Jeff Springer, both of San Francisco, poke gentle fun at the locals without ridiculing them. The film's playful spirit is underscored by catchy steel-guitar melodies (courtesy of the Friends of Dean Martinez) that perfectly suit the bone-dry setting. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderFred Camper
Occasionally lighthearted but always affecting cautionary tale. Read full review
70
L.A. WeeklySteve Mikulan
Narrated with surprising empathy by John Waters, is a historically thorough and thoroughly hysterical examination of the big, smelly desert lake's formation. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesMichael Ordona
Although ill-served by the lack of expert voices or elaboration on viable choices, Plagues and Pleasures is an often-fascinating document of change -- incremental as evaporation, or catastrophic as flooding. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
The late U.S. Rep. Sonny Bono and his widow and successor Mary Bono have spent a good deal of time trying to save it. It's a hard task, but the film does suggest there's more to the sea than meets the eye. Read full review
60
VarietyScott Foundas
Jaunty and fun for a while, with a cast of colorful locals who make the residents of "Vernon, Florida" seem normal, pic ultimately overstays its welcome and overstates its case. Read full review
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