Queen of the Desert (film)

This article is about the 2015 biopic. For the 1994 comedy-drama film, see The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. For the stage adaptation, see Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (musical).

Queen of the Desert
Theatrical release poster
Directed byWerner Herzog
Screenplay byWerner Herzog
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyPeter Zeitlinger
Edited byJoe Bini
Music byKlaus Badelt[3]
Mark Yaeger[4]
Production
companies
Distributed byIFC Films
Release dates
  • February 6, 2015 (2015-02-06) (Berlin)
  • April 14, 2017 (2017-04-14)
Running time
128 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$36 million[5]
Box office$2 million[6]

Queen of the Desert is a 2015 American epic biographical drama film written and directed by Werner Herzog and is based on the life of British traveller, writer, archaeologist, explorer, cartographer and political officer Gertrude Bell.[7][8] The film follows Bell's life chronologically, from her early twenties until her death. It was Herzog's first feature film in six years after his 2009 film My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?

The film stars Nicole Kidman, James Franco, Damian Lewis and Robert Pattinson.[9] After going through many delays and casting problems, production finally took place from December 2013 to March 2014 in Morocco, Jordan and England. It was screened in the main competition section of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival and had its premiere on February 6, 2015.[10][11] It had a theatrical release in Germany on September 3, 2015.[12]

The film received mostly negative reviews from critics and was also a major financial disappointment, grossing $2 million against a $36 million production budget.

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference b was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b "Robert Pattinson Joining Naomi Watts in 'Queen of the Desert'". The Hollywood Reporter. August 14, 2012. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
  3. ^ "Klaus Badelt to Score Werner Herzog's 'Queen of the Desert'". Film Music Reporter. Retrieved February 13, 2014.
  4. ^ "Mark Yaeger". IMDb.
  5. ^ "Kidman's life feeds her roles". au.news.yahoo. January 2014. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  6. ^ "Queen of the Desert (2016)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  7. ^ "Werner Herzog Wants to Crown Naomi Watts Queen of the Desert". vulture.com. February 3, 2011. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
  8. ^ "AFM 2012: Jude Law Joining Werner Herzog's 'Queen of the Desert'". The Hollywood Reporter. November 2, 2012. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
  9. ^ "Robert Pattinson Joins James Gray's 'Lost City Of Z' With Benedict Cumberbatch". blogs.indiewire. Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
  10. ^ "Jafar Panahi's New Film in Competition". berlinale.de. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  11. ^ "Queen of the Desert". berlinale.de. Archived from the original on January 30, 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  12. ^ "Königin der Wüste". Retrieved September 1, 2015.