honore de balzac genuinely bizarre short story on which this be loosely base get an unsettling and albeit breathtakingly film and treatment here a a sort of forbidden love blossom over a period of time between man and beast in the early part of the nineteenth century . thin and very blonde english actor ben daniel play the role of a young soldier during the napoleonic war who get lose whilst escort an exile ( . ) french painter across the rugged and dangerous landscape of the gobi desert . after literally go around in circle the two men give up ever try to reach civilization again and thus each decides ( against good judgment mind you ) to go their separate way with the promise of both return to the same exact spot when and if a water source be actually find . this be of course how daniels character come to encounter the creature ( a wild and untamed female leopard ) and eventually form a seemingly unbreakable bond and or rather love and with it that both save his life and nearly destroy it by film end . the exquisite cinematography and minimalist dialog and somewhat demented story which arguably hint at possible bestiality in about three scene be what ultimately lead professional critic to pan the film a pretentious and overlong rubbish . while it be a film that isn not exactly for all taste mind you and i find it to be a subtle and though decidedly leave of center mixture of fantasy with a surreal and sumptuous atmosphere and highlight by the fact that for more than half of the flick actor ben daniel be force to perform opposite a wild animal ( four leopard be actually use a oppose to just the one ) and which plain common sense and a slight knowledge of theatrics dictate that it must have be a maddening and very difficult job that he manage to pull off quite brilliantly if you ask me . overall and i think that passion in the desert take a while to warm up to and but if youre a patient person who be willing to give it some time it do in fact cast it uniquely original spell over you in spite of everything while and unlike most platonic human and animal relationship story it need not require a talk pig and monkey or shaggy dog to keep your interest throughout . ( out of ) .