<p> The great inland lake called the Salton Sea was once part of the California Dream with its sandy beaches and '50s futuristic motel resorts. The documentary <em>Bombay Beach</em> opens with faded promotional footage of this dreamland but never explains why or when it decayed into a desert slum. Director Alma Har'el can be faulted for never connecting the past she introduces with what she chooses to show of the presentthree people and their circles living nowadays in the rubble and trailer parks surrounding the Salton Sea. Context is missing for the Parrish family and their Ritalin-ridden little boy, Benny; and for Red, the old timer who ekes out a living selling cigarettes. Only one person's presence is explained, the black teen CeeJay, who fled the gang violence of LA to live in the wasteland with a relative. </p> <p><em>Bombay Beach's</em> strength is in several well-choreographed scenes involving the subjects and their sense of hope in spite of the bleak surroundings. CeeJay is getting ahead with his schoolwork and his life, the Parrishes are holding together and Red maintains his precarious dignity as he waits for death. <em>Bombay Beach</em>, winner of the Best Documentary prize at the Tribeca Film Festival, is out on DVD. </p>
