Year: 1984
Director: Wim Wenders
Country(s): West Germany, US
Language: English
Wim Wenders can be considered one of the greatest German filmmakers of all time, along with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Werner Herzog and Volker Schlondorff. His films have the ability to captivate, mesmerize and inspire. His Pina (2011) is likely the best documentary ever made. Surely his Wings of Desire (1987) will melt your heart. Though those films are utterly fantastic, the best of them is definitely Paris, Texas.
The film centers on a man named Travis (Harry Dean Stanton) wanders out of the desert not knowing who he is. His brother (Dean Stockwell) 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. As his memory returns, he makes contact with various people from his past
Paris, Texas is an absolutely wonderful film because it doesn't need an absurd plot to grab intrigue. Nor does it rely on gimmicks like special effects, shock or out of the blue plot twists to tug at the heart. The film simply is what it is, a story of loss upon loss and a man who is looking to redeem himself somehow. The main character Travis is painfully human, he is a man we all know or at least have heard of. With this film Wenders shows that even simple stories are incredibly powerful.
The film's visuals and music combine to prop up the story, and give the film its enduring cultural themes of alienation, regret, grief and emotional separation. The characters of this film almost represent all of America as a whole. There is exquisite photography that shows scenes of incredible isolation. The dialogue is fresh, convincing and realistic. The acting is remarkable, surely the actors of this film must have won some prestigious awards. Paris, Texas is a perfectly slow paced "road movie" that is very life affirming. It teaches that, while there are bad things in the world, there is an exceptional amount of good as well.
In conclusion, Paris, Texas is a truly brilliant film that I definitely have to own a copy of. It is something that must be watched again and again, if only to restore your faith in humanity. There is a lifetime of lessons to be learned from this film, much more than can be said for most others. Perhaps instead of embracing technology, we should be making more films like this. Praise it! 5/5
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