Paris, Texas (1984)

Note Générale:

7,9/10   

Réalisateur:

Wim Wenders

Scénaristes:

L.M. Kit Carson (adaptation)
Sam Shepard (written by)

Date de sortie:

9 novembre 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Drame

Accroche:

A place for dreams. A place for heartbreak. A place to pick up the pieces.

Intrigue:

A man wanders out of the desert not knowing who he is. His brother finds him, and helps to pull his...

Plot Keywords:

Desert | Paris Texas | Reunion | Amnesia | German American

Récompenses:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 14 wins & 5 nominations

Avis des utilisateurs:

Excellent and potent tale of loss

Ensemble

Harry Dean Stanton	...	Travis Henderson
Sam Berry	...	Gas Station Attendant
Bernhard Wicki	...	Doctor Ulmer
Dean Stockwell	...	Walt Henderson
Aurore Clément	...	Anne Henderson (as Aurore Clement)
Claresie Mobley	...	Car Rental Clerk
Hunter Carson	...	Hunter Henderson
Viva	...	Woman on TV (as Viva Auder)
Socorro Valdez	...	Carmelita
Edward Fayton	...	Hunter's Friend
Justin Hogg	...	Hunter - Age 3
Nastassja Kinski	...	Jane Henderson
Tom Farrell	...	Screaming Man
John Lurie	...	Slater
Jeni Vici	...	Stretch

Autre(s) titre(s):

Motel Chronicles (West Germany) (working title)
Paris, Texas (West Germany)

Durée:

147 min

Pays:

Allemagne de l'ouest | France | UK

Langue:

Anglais

Couleur:

Couleur

Rapport de forme:

1,66 : 1

Son:

Mono

Classification:

Iceland:L | Australia:M | UK:12 (DVD rating) (2007) | West Germany:6 | South Korea:15 | Brazil:12 | Australia:PG | Finland:S | Norway:12 | Sweden:Btl | UK:15 | USA:R | Argentina:13 | Singapore:PG | New Zealand:R | France:U | Portugal:M/12

Lieux de tournage:

10060 Olivia Terrace, Sun Valley, Los Angeles, California, USA

Société:

Road Movies Filmproduktion

Anecdotes:

The restaurant that Travis calls Walt's home from is actually located in Cabazon, CA (not San Bernardino, which is about 45 miles away.) This of course is home to Claude Bell's famous concrete T-Rex and brontosaurus.

Goofs:

Continuité: When Hunter calls Walt and Anne from a payphone in San Bernadino, he is supposed to be calling collect (Travis is shown instructing him briefly on how to do it). However, when we cut to Walt answering the telephone at home, he is immediately on the line with Hunter and is never asked if he would care to accept the charges for a collect call.

Guillemet:

Travis: He didn't even notice it at first. She started to change. From the day the baby was born, she began to get irritated with everything around her. She got mad at everything. Even the baby seemed to be an injustice to her. He kept trying to make everything all right for her...

Connexions:

Références Yentl (1983)

Excellent and potent tale of loss

Paris, Texas is my first ever taste of acclaimed director Wim Wenders, and while the film isn't exactly sweet; it's certainly not bitter enough to steer itself away from the realms of the masterpiece. Paris, Texas is very much a character driven story and it follows the account of a man that wanders out of the hot desert sun with an acute case of amnesia. When his brother, Walt, finds him, he helps him to remember his life, and we then watch as our protagonist rekindles his former relationships first with son, and then with the mother of his child. Wim Wenders handles this story with the utmost skill, and it works thanks to the tentative way that he portrays the characters to the audience. Just like the town of it's title; Paris, Texas is basically a film about being lost. I (and I'm sure many other people) didn't even realise that there was a place called Paris in the middle of Texas, and this little place is symbolic of the substance that is at the core of this movie.

The film doesn't benefit from any big name actors, but the actors in the movie do give it their all and ensure that it doesn't fall down on the acting side. Harry Dean Stanton takes the lead role, and does a good job in, at first, portraying a man consumed with amnesia; and then consumed with the time he has lost. Nastassja Kinski is the only member of the cast that has a really notable list of film credits other than this movie, but ironically she has the least screen time of the five leads. Every minute she is on screen is a delight, however, and she lights up the screen with both of her talents; looks and acting ability. The young Hunter Carson gives a rare child performance; i.e. one that isn't incredibly annoying, but strangely he didn't appear in very many movies after this one. The climax to the tale is more than satisfying, and is easily one of the most haunting and potent I've ever seen in a film. Wenders shows his talent with both the execution and the implications of it, and it's a satisfying end to a very satisfying movie. Recommended.