Paris, Texas (1984)

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:

A European View Of America

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: Travis and his brother check into a small motel on their first night, where we see a dresser with an ugly lamp sitting on top. After Travis runs off, they continue down the road and stay in a larger hotel, where we see the same dresser and light.

Guillemet:

Jane Henderson: I... I used to make long speeches to you after you left. I used to talk to you all the time, even though I was alone. I walked around for months talking to you. Now I don't know what to say. It was easier when I just imagined you. I even imagined you talking back to me...

Connexions De Film:

Références Yentl (1983)

A European View Of America

At face value, the screen story, about a dysfunctional family, is weak. The plot is not really credible. The lead character (Travis) is an older man who in the first ten minutes of the film wonders alone in the desert like a horse with no name, seemingly suffering from severe trauma. But Travis' later behavior and the behavior of other characters in the film are not believable, given this opening gambit.

However, if we discard our need to interpret behavior rationally, then the film works, either as a dream or, more generically, as a parable of modern day America, from the viewpoint of a European film director. The characters and their journey through the film's story are symbolic of American culture as a whole, with its ever-present loneliness, urban alienation, emotional separation, and general rootlessness.

The film's visuals and music combine to prop up the thin story, and give the film its enduring cultural theme. Cinematographer Robby Muller's images are stunning. His location shots both in the desert and in the urban jungle, using polarizing filters, are works of true photographic art. The images, with their florescent greens, reds, blues, and yellows in dim light are just terrific. More than any dialogue could, these visuals effectively convey the loneliness, alienation, and lost love that are so characteristically American. And Ry Cooder's simple but haunting Tex-Mex guitar sounds amplify this grim mood.

The film's main flaw is its length. With a runtime of 150 minutes, some parts of the film could have been edited out, without loss of the film's message.

"Paris, Texas" is a memorable art house film about the modern American experience. Like other art house films, the story is not necessarily to be taken literally. Instead, the story provides narrative support for the visuals, the music, and other film elements, the combination of which imparts some broader or deeper social message than could be conveyed by story alone.