Ok, so I haven't written in about a year and a half... but nonetheless, it's at long last time for today's movie

Today's Movie: The Straight Story

After the year and a half it has taken me to recover from the horrid piece of crap that is The Wedding Planner, I decided to write about one of my all time favorites next. David Lynch's quiet and subdued movie, The Straight Story, seems an unlikely movie from this master of the dark and disturbing. It tells the story of Alvin Straight, an elderly man from an Iowa small town who lives with his boarderline retarded daughter Rose. You are introduced to them quietly and unceremoniously at the start of the movie, and whereas Rose's character seems a bit overacted at first, Alvin's character comes across warm and endearing and that engages you in the movie right off the bat and makes you really root for Alvin Straight throughout the story. The storyline is basically that Alvin has a brother Lyle, to whom he hasn't spoken in 15 years. When news reach Alvin that his brother has suffered a serious stroke, Alvin decides that silly pride has stolen too much from them already and wants to make the trip to mend fences with his brother before he dies. But how to do it? He doesn't have a driver's license and in typical male fashion doesn't like anyone else driving his car for him either. He ends up building a trailer to bunk in, which he ties to the back of his 1966 lawnmower and takes off. The movie follows him on his journey from Iowa to Wisconsin, encountering many people along the way. We are given subtle peeks into the lives of those he crosses paths with and through the homemade wisdom Alvin shares with them, we get to learn more about Alvin and his life. We learn more about Rose and all the pieces about her behavior begin to fit together to form a character as whole and lovable as Alvin himself. The movie is very slow paced and quiet but it never gets boring. You really get to see the patience and determination Alvin posesses and you really see the beauty of how slow and steady wins the race. The journey takes him 8 - 10 weeks total, moving slowly along the highway, day by day getting closer to where he's going. Near the end of the movie, when you see him begin to get closer to where his brother lives, you also get to see the subtle excitement build up inside of him and the never overstated, quiet anxiety beneath. Is his brother ok? He was on the road for a long time, did he make it in time? It is never spoken, but you can virtually see it coming from Alvin's eyes. This movie focuses intently on the simple things in life, family ties and how the human spirit can overcome any obstacle and if we would only relax and give ourselves enough time, anything is possible. And it reminds you to not get caught up in the silly things. It reminds us how important family is and how anger and bitterness can still control our lives long after we forget what we're angry about. It tells you to mend fences and forgive and forget, don't lose what's most important because of what's least important. It's the ultimate feel-good movie without ever being corny or overly sentimental. It makes you want to call your entire family and tell them how much you love them. Whether you actually do or not, well that's left up to you, but the movie definitely makes you stop and think about it.

The whole movie more or less rests on the capable shoulders of the late Richard Farnsworth, who if he was born to play one role, the role of Alvin Straight was it. He was one of those actors where you could actually see the compassion and the emotion behind his eyes, he was never just reciting lines. He actually WAS his character, and that makes all the difference. A truly brilliant performance from a truly brilliant actor.
Also delivering a fabulous performance was Sissy Spaceck in the role of Rosie Straight, Alvin's mentally challenged daughter. Her character is a bit slower to come together in the movie and in the beginning it looks almost too dramatic, but as the pieces of the character begin to add up and fit the puzzle as the movie goes on, you begin to realize why she is the way she is and her performance becomes almost as moving as Farnsworth's.

This movie is so much more than just the sum of it's parts though, I can't even tell you. Due to it's slow pace and quiet, understated content it might not suit young children or fans of The Fast and The Furious, but for anyone who wants to see a truly moving masterpiece about the beauty and strength of the human spirit I couldn't tell you often enough to GET THIS MOVIE. But make sure you put your family on speed dial first, and keep the Kleenex close.