Is there such thing as a perfect movie? Something that, no matter how many times you watch it, it's impossible to find a single fault with? Maybe not, but Wim Wenders' classic drama Paris, Texas is about as close as you will ever come.
Thursday 23 September 2010
FILM CHALLENGE: 129) Paris, Texas
Added Jan 6, 2010,
129) Paris, Texas
Director: Wim Wenders
Year: 1984
Plot Summary: A man wanders out in the desert not knowing who he is until his brother finds him, and helps to pull his memory back of the life he led before he walked out on his wife and son four years before.
The three major figures of the German New Wave of the 1960s and 1970s all ended up taking completely divergent paths. Fassbinder remained determinedly local and burned out quickly. Werner Herzog became interested in issues of man versus nature and often ventured out into uncomfortable sections of the world with dark, cynical stories. And Wim Wenders became fascinated by America. This love of the country is undeniably present in Paris, Texas through the gorgeous visuals, whether it's the desolate open ranges of Texas or the golden glow of California. It can also be found in the score from Ry Cooder with its blend of traditional American music like blues and country. Furthermore, the whole atmosphere and tone of the movie almost evokes some of the great American road stories like On The Road by Jack Kerouac and, perhaps more loosely, Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas by Hunter S Thompson.
But Paris, Texas isn't just a beautiful, poetic love letter to America. It's also one of the most fascinating character studies that, in my humble opinion, has ever graced the big screen. Right from the opening moment, as Travis Henderson walks alone through the Mojave desert carrying just a near-empty bottle of water, the audience is thrown into this mystery about who the man is and what he is doing there. Completely silent and alienated from the rest of the world, we understand that Travis has been through some traumatic ordeal. As the narrative moves forward we are slowly given answers to these questions about what made Travis the way he is, and with each of these revelations, Paris, Texas creates a more complex, emotionally believable and three-dimensional protagonist.
The fact your desire to know more about Travis makes up most of this Palme D'Or winning movie's narrative is a testament to how fascinating this character is, to the brilliant writing by Sam Shepard and to the intensely underrated performance by Harry Dean Stanton. The man could have won every acting award, been knighted by the Queen and made the President and I'd still say that he didn't receive a just response to how great he truly was. After all, his role as Travis Henderson is, without a doubt, in my top ten performances of all time. For the entire first 25 minutes of the film, he doesn't say a line of dialogue yet, through the way he walks, he composes himself, the look in his eyes, etc. we immediately feel sympathy towards him and want to unlock the mystery of what broke him.
But, aside from finding out about the character's past, Paris, Texas also offers an emotional story of one man's quest for redemption. While we don't quite know what he feels he needs to redeem himself from, even the coldest of hearts will be touched by Travis' determination to connect to Hunter and find his long-disappeared wife. When his opportunity for redemption finally comes in a breathtaking monologue and with it the revelation about what really happened in Travis' life, the raw emotion from Shepard's writing, Harry Dean Stanton's acting and Wim Wenders' still, simplistic camera work all create one of the most powerful moments in cinematic history.
Wim Wenders has made one of the greatest American stories of all time with Paris, Texas. A movie so beautifully made that you almost forget that it's 26 years old. A story so intelligent yet so simplistic in its execution that I doubt anyone could dislike it. And a story so moving that, despite it's 140 minute running length, you could revisit it day after day for the rest of your life and still fall in love with it. Incredible.
5/5
2 comments:
I loooove this film. Was it your first viewing? It's always extraordinary. The cinematography and score are unreal.
Nooooo, there's been many viewings. But it's just improved on every single one of them. :)
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