The Delta

Critics Consensus

No consensus yet.

67%

TOMATOMETER

Reviews Counted: 6

31%
liked it

Audience Score

User Ratings: 281

All Critics | Top Critics

Average Rating: N/A
Reviews Count: 0
Fresh: 0
Rotten: 0

Average Rating: 2.9/5

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Movie Info

During a slow summer, a teenager avoids his girlfriend and comfortable suburban family life to cruise the Memphis streets, where he picks up a Vietnamese immigrant. With a vivid and granular evocation of its Southern locales, using nonprofessional actors and a laconic style, this is one of the finest American independent film debuts of the 1990s.

Rating:

NR
Genre:

Drama, Gay & Lesbian
Directed By:

Ira Sachs
Written By:

Ira Sachs
In Theaters:

Aug 15, 1997 wide
On Disc/Streaming:

Jul 5, 2005
Runtime:

85 minutes
Studio:

Charlie Guidance Productions

Cast

Shayne Gray
as Lincoln Bloom

Thang Chan
as John

Rachel Zan Huss
as Monica

Colonious Davis
as Ricky Little

Larry Reynolds
as Man in Park

Angelique Owens
as Donut Shop Clerk

Leigh Walden
as Cece Bloom

Gene Crain
as Sam Bloom

Charles Ingram
as Gary Bloom

Ron Gephart
as Ken Bloom

Kim Newman
as Denise Bloom

Polly Edelstein
as Debbie Bloom

Vanita Thomas
as Bernice

Randall Reinke
as Danny

Melissa A. Dunn
as Tina Clifton

Erin Grills
as Jacquie Clifton

Kate Davis
as Gloria Clifton

Mark Hyman
as Club Bouncer

Michael Pancho Locke
as Michael/Kid on Bike

Robert Hathaway
as 2nd Kid on Bike

Lamar Sorrento
as Ted

Richard Daggett
as Pick-up Driver

Anthony Isbell
as Jerry--Man in Hotel

Joseph 'Bama' Crumpton
as Joe

J.R. Crumpton
as Joe

Patricia A. Gill
as Joe's Wife

Moses Peace
as Policeman

Moses J. Peace
as Policeman

Nhan Van Dang
as Minh's Roommate

Thi Ho Bay
as Roommate's Mother

Hoang N. Pham
as Minh's Friend

Pham Minh Hoang
as Minh's Friend

Mai Ballard
as Pool Hall Owner

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Critic Reviews for The Delta

All Critics (6) | Top Critics (1) | Fresh (4) | Rotten (2)

This intimate gay drama, about the complex relationship between a white adolescent and a Vietnamese immigrant, displays a fresh voice but suffers from structural flaws and ultra-modest production values.

Apr 12, 2006 | Rating: 2/4

Emanuel Levy
Variety
Top Critic
Against the tide of political correctness, The Delta was first to chart the unsafe streams of gay experience.

Oct 25, 2017 | Full Review…

Armond White
Out Magazine
The film now seems more infuential and prescient than ever, a signature work that heralded a revived interest in 'Queer' cinema while pointing the way toward an ever more influential documentarian and micro-budgeted American independent film scene.

Nov 16, 2012 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…

John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Although Sachs cannot sustain the cinematic promise of The Delta's early sequences, his moral seriousness and technical finesse merit attention.

Jan 12, 2007 | Full Review…

Richard Porton
Film Journal International