PARIS, TEXAS. Directed by Wim Wenders; written by Sam Shepard: produced by Don Guest for Twentieth Century Fox. Starring Harry Dean Stanton, Dean Stockwell and Hunter Carson. Rated R (language).
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The title makes this movie sound sort of down home, but beware! Although it has an American cast and its spoken language is English, it's definitely a foreign movie. It displays the European filmmakers' preference for thought and style and symbol over action. And the lack of action, coupled with its length (2 1/2 hours) make it hard to recommend for those who look to the movies purely for entertainment value.
But—and this is a big qualification—it's an extremely well-made, thought-provoking and artistic movie. Well worth seeing if your tastes incline toward this kind of movie at all. Actually, if this is the case, you probably already know that Paris, Texas has been out since last spring and has been very well-received critically. So I'll just add my name to the list of those who have called it quite an exceptional movie. Not for all tastes, but very good at what it does.
What it does is tell the story of Travis (Stanton), who stumbles out of the Big Bend desert at the beginning of the movie. Travis is obviously pretty messed up, but gradually, with encouragement from his brother Walt (Stockwell), he returns to the "land of the living." But he won't (or can't) tell anyone where he's been for the last four years, or how his son ended up on Walt's doorstep.
The boy (Carson) has been lovingly cared for by his aunt (Aurore Clement) and uncle. But when he meets his real father, he is drawn to him. And Travis needs his son, as well as his missing wife, to complete his rehabilitation.
This synopsis only covers about two thirds of the movie, and the most interesting part is the last. But I don't want to spoil what suspense there is in the plot. The story itself isn't really all that important anyway. The relationships are, and they are finely drawn.
Stanton, who has been around so long playing heavies on TV and in B movies, delivers a fine performance that is affecting, restrained and ultimately mysterious. The rest of the cast is very good as well, but the other characters are important mostly for how they relate to Travis. I should especially mention Nastassja Kinski, since I didn't list her above. She gives a good performance, as usual, as the wife. But, in spite of the look of ads for the movie, she's not in it much.
And, I might add, there's not much of her in it either. The movie was released before PG-13 was available as a rating. The R reflects a few uses of vulgar language only. There's no violence, sex or nudity to speak of.
The emotional impact of Paris, Texas is undeniable, but it builds slowly. The performances, and the universal nature of the characters' problems, certainly contribute to the overall effectiveness. But the realistic settings, with much attention paid to the particularities of places, and the haunting score by Ry Cooder, also play a part.
Paris, Texas' main idea is the difficulty of communication, especially of our deepest needs and fears, and especially to those closest to us. And the styIe of the movie fits this theme very well. While this symmetry makes the movie artistically very interesting, it also makes it harder to watch. But if you're not put off by movies with "themes," or by foreign films altogether, it's well worth the effort.
May 8, 1985