(1984) [Trailer]
Director: Wim Wenders (IMDB)
I've spoken to the effect that I am overly generous with my ratings for movie on this blog before. I don't think a movie necessarily has to be perfect to receive five stars (Arnolds), but then again is there such a thing as a perfect movie? Who knows, but Paris, Texas is pretty damn close.
Synopsis: After being gone four years Harry Dean Stanton wanders back into his family's life.
This movie has no real flaws that I can think of. The cinematography is some of the best in cinema. The intro filmed throughout the desert is magnificent and some of the shots in the evening when the sun is setting are unreal. The acting, score and plot are as solid as one could ask for from a film.
Paris, Texas is a story of reunion, forgiveness and making amends for past mistakes. This is a real honest look at a family portrait, while not the typical nuclear family, an interesting one nonetheless. Harry Dean Stanton and Nastassja Kinski's final meeting is one of the most interesting things I've seen on the big screen. The dialogue is extremely powerful but also the setting makes for something really special. Nastassja sits in this facade of a perfect looking room on one side, Harry is alone in the dark on the other side, and a barely finished wall filled with insulation and a one sided glass window separates the two. I like to think of the rooms as a metaphor for the characters themselves. She's broken and unfinished but at first glance seems beautiful and put together. Harry Dean Stanton's character is one who is lost and some what in the dark. I also thought the son's role was well played. He's the one that should be the most upset, but you get this feeling that he's just happy to know his biological parents and have them back in his life.
I really picked up a lot more on this viewing and watching the Criterion transfer on blu-ray didn't hurt either. Get on it people.
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