The Straight Story
The road movie genre provides filmmakers with a trusty vehicle in which to have their characters find adventure, reflect on the past, explore themselves, meet new characters, and/or escape. There are so many great films which fall under this category that I will have to put the brakes on and limit my picks for this submission.
Rated G, David Lynch’s The Straight Story was filmed for Disney! Alvin Straight, played by William Farnsworth, decides to travel across several states to visit his ailing brother on a riding lawnmower with a trailer in tow. The film is told “straight”, the character’s name is Straight, but is his life story representation straight? Simplicity with much depth, The Straight Story is a masterwork. Both Farnsworth and Sissy Spacek (playing Alvin’s daughter Rose) give heartfelt performances.
Wild At Heart
Wild at Heart is another installment here for director, David Lynch. Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern play lovers on the run in this surrealist road movie thriller. Big nods to Elvis and The Wizard Of Oz, which help the film with its wonderful offbeat charm.
The couple’s love is intense, as is their adventurous spirit. Aside from the two leads, Harry Dean Stanton, Willem Dafoe, Diane Ladd, Isabella Rosselini and Crispin Glover also share the screen. This movie is a whole lot of fun.
Wild Strawberries
Swedish director Ingmar Bergman’s road movie is Wild Strawberries. The film focuses on a medical professor who travels with his daughter-in-law across country. Bergman utilizes his dreams, flashbacks of the past, and his fantasies to allow the elderly character to reflect on the things that helped to make him cold and callous. He is also finally able to hear others’ opinions of him in an objective way. The film has great use of symbolism and is an all-time classic.
Deconstructing Harry
Deconstructing Harry is Woody Allen’s Wild Strawberries. As in Wild Strawberries, his character travels in order to be honored for an award. Although his journey is one of self discovery as well, much of the similarities stop there.
Deconstructing Harry is a dark comedy, and Allen does not hold back. His portrayal of Hell is just unforgettable. The writer character played by Allen is visited by many of the characters from his books. It is very witty and very smart.
Until next time, I hope you have a great viewing experience. Comments are welcomed at cinespire@gmail.com.
