Ask the Dust

Chasing an aspiring novelist's dream in 1930s Los Angeles, Arturo Bandini (Farrell)--the son of Italian immigrants but desperate to leave his heritage behind--collides into a turbulent love/hate affair with Camilla (Hayek), a Latina waitress with her own agenda to quickly ascend the social ladder. When Arturo comes into money to write his book, their relationship oddly cools off, while later he struggles with what success has cost him. Taken from John Fantes' 1939 novel of the same name and highlighted by brilliant desert scenery shot in South Africa.