Today's Cinema Saturday post is about a movie I've heard about a lot but one I didn't necessarily feel compelled to seek out. Then in the wee hours of the night turning into morning, TCM put this movie on in front of my sleepless eyes, I decided what the hell and figured to watch for a little bit until sleep finally overcame me.
Two hours later after I watched this movie, as the sun rose overhead, I did go to bed only to have it invade my dreams.
From 1984, the film for today's post is Paris, Texas.
Directed by Wim Wenders, co-written by Sam Shepard and L. M. Kit Carson, the film stars Harry Dean Stanton, Nastassja Kinski and Dean Stockwell (Al from the original Quantum Leap).
Cinematography was by Robby Müller and this movie does look good.
The haunting blues influenced musical score was composed by Ry Cooder.
At the 1984 Cannes Film Festival, Paris Texas won the Palme d'Or from the official jury. It went on to other honors and widespread critical acclaim praising mainly direction, acting, cinematography, emotional resonance and musical score.
I'm going to write this post by approaching the movie in 3 parts.
"His Brother's Keeper"
Travis Henderson wanders out of the West Texas desert into a convenience store, opens a freezer, and starts eating ice before falling unconsciousness. A doctor examines Travis and discovers that he is mute. The doctor goes through Travis's wallet and finds a card with a phone number on it.
Walt Henderson, Travis's brother, answers the call and travels from Los Angeles to Terlingua, Texas, to pick up Travis.
Walt's a bit gobsmacked by this. Travis has been missing for years, presumed to be long dead. Meanwhile, Walt and his wife Anne have been raising his son Hunter as their own. Hunter's mom, Jane, has also been out of the picture as well.
Walt arrives in Texas but Travis has wandered away from the clinic. Walt finds his brother following a railroad track that extends out along the Texas desert and disappears beyond the distant horizon.
This scene still haunts my dreams months after I saw this movie.
Time for a road trip back to Los Angeles. Walt patience wears thin with Travis's persistent muteness. Looking to provoke a response, any reaction, Walt pushes Travis to explain himself, why did he disappear, where did he go, how could he abandon his son like that.
Travis still will not speak but he does shed a tear at the mention of Hunter's name.
The following day, Travis finally begins to speak and produces a photo of a plot of land, explaining to Walt that he purchased a property in Paris, Texas.
"The Prodigal Returns"
Arriving in Los Angeles, Travis is reunited with Hunter.
Hunter has little recollection of his father and is naturally stand offish around him.
After several days of effort by Travis, Hunter begins to grow comfortable around his father.
Anne tells Travis in confidence that Jane deposits monthly payments into a bank account for Hunter and that the bank is in Houston.
Travis becomes immediately determined to find Jane, and tells Hunter that he has to leave the following night. Hunter tells Travis that he wants to go with him.
Time for another road trip with father and son heading to Houston with Travis & Hunter bonding and growing closer.
Hunter calls Walt and Anne to tell them not to worry.
They're going to find his mother.
"A Family Reunion Of Sorts"
Travis and Hunter arrive at the Houston bank on the day of the expected deposit. Hunter spots Jane making a drive-in deposit, and the two follow her car to her job.
The following day, Travis drops Hunter off at the Meridian Hotel and goes back to Jane's workplace. Jane works at a peep show designed so customers sit on one side of a one-way mirror with a telephone intercom to the performer.
Facing away from the window, Travis tells Jane a story of a man and a younger woman who met, fell in love, got married, and had a child.
Jane starts to piece together that it's Travis on the phone.
Travis continues his tale.
After giving birth, the young mother suffered from depression, experiencing anger, confusion, despair.
The man was on downward spiral as well into alcoholism. Driven by fear of losing the woman he loved, he engaged in abusive behavior that just made her want to leave even more.
The tale ends with the man waking up to a house on fire and his wife and child have vanished.
Jane voices her pain and regret over missing Hunter's childhood.
Travis tells Jane that Hunter is in Houston waiting for her at the Meridian Hotel.
That night, Jane and Hunter reunite while Travis watches from the parking lot.
Travis drives away, smiling to himself.
The scene where Travis confesses his sins to Jane through the peep show glass is hard to watch. I know from sad personal experience what it's like to do the absolute worst possible shit to the very person you love more than anything out of fear of losing them. Which just drives people away.
After finishing this movie, I went back to bed and slept until noon, dreaming of walking that long railroad track through a flat and endless desert. And I also dreamed of that dark room, confessing my sins to those I loved but managed to only hurt.
I recognized in Travis a fellow damaged person.
Damn! This movie did a number on me.
I do not know what I expected from Paris Texas but I did NOT expect to be put into an existential crisis.
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Blog Bidness: the End of Cinema Saturday
I have watched (and continue to watch) a lot of movies and having only one blog post a weekend to write about them was not enough.
So in January I rolled out Cinema Saturday to help break the bottle neck of movies I've seen and wanted to post about.
But writing TWO film based posts a week is difficult.
So I am changing how I write about the movies I've seen.
After tomorrow's Cinema Sunday, I will start in July a new series of posts called Dave-El's Weekend Movie Post which I will post on Saturday. On those occasions where I have the spoons to handle two posts, I will post a 2nd Dave-El's Weekend Movie Post on Sunday.
I will continue to share my love of movies but under a more manageable plan.
Until next time, remember to be good to one another.
