Ask the Dust

Ask the Dust is a 2006 film based on the book Ask the Dust by John Fante. The movie was written and directed by Robert Towne. Tom Cruise (with Paula Wagner and Cruise/Wagner Productions) served as one of the film's producers. The film was released on a limited basis on March 17, 2006. The story is set during the Great Depression (specifically, circa the 1933 Long Beach earthquake). Hayek plays a fiery Mexican beauty, Camilla. She is a woman who one day aspires to be above her current standing in society. She wishes to do this by marrying a wealthy man from the United States. Her plan is thrown into disarray when she meets Italian Arturo Bandini (Farrell). The rights to the novel once belonged to Mel Brooks, though he let them lapse. Towne met Fante in the 1970s. This meeting led to his interest in the project. Despite finishing the script in the early 1990s, he couldn't find financial backing from a studio. During this time Farrell's role was originally set to be played by Johnny... full article at wikipedia