Paris, Texas (1984)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Director:

Wim Wenders

Writers:

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

Release Date:

9 November 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

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

Plot:

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

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 14 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

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

Also Known As:

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

Runtime:

147 min

Country:

West Germany | France | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

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

Filming Locations:

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

Company:

Road Movies Filmproduktion

Trivia:

During the scene in the Texas airport, Dean Stockwell's character is on the phone with his wife. The PA announcer can be heard saying "A message for Joy Stockwell, Joy Stockwell. Austin will arrive at any minute." Joy was Dean's wife and Austin, his son, was born during production of this film.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Travis is talking to Jane in the rap parlor booth, at one point she tells him, "Please go on", in a European sounding accent. The character is from Texas and has a Texas accent.

Quotes:

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...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Die Überraschung (2004)

An experience not to be missed

Moody, slow, absorbing, you lose yourself in this 'love lost' and in many ways tragic story. This film was probably an early warning to us all of how life can easily overwhelm without us realising it. It is also virtually unique in the successful portrayal of a man who is deeply lost in his innermost thoughts that the outside world becomes almost a minutiae. Mr Stanton encapsulates this mood perfectly and this is probably his best performance ever. The most moving scene (and there are many) might be when he reviews some old cine film of his life (a normal happy love story which surely could not have gone wrong so badly)before he walked away from it all. I can't help but think this is a real life epistle which could be a marker for how life has overtaken the human race in the last 20 years.