A film full of qualities, but which will not please the general public.
There are films that are made for commercial audiences and others that are clearly made to please specialized critics and film theorists. Although this film was present on the commercial circuit, the truth is that Wim Wenders directed this film for critics and film festival audiences, and this explains why critics love it and why the general public hardly knows this work. . About me? To be quite honest, I didn't particularly like the film, and it's not the kind of film I like to watch or watch with pleasure. However, I am the first to recognize that it is a work full of artistic and technical qualities, and that it deserves a close look by any student and fan of the seventh art.
The plot revolves around a man who spent four years wandering through desert areas of Texas due to a huge psychological shock. We don't know what he suffered, but it is obvious that he is not well when he is finally rescued by his brother, and he spends a long time without saying a word, just trying to resume his march to nowhere. As the plot develops, we understand the emotional void he feels and desperately seeks to fill. The reunion with his son, whom he hadn't seen for years, will mark the beginning of a journey of inner healing, of reuniting with himself and the hurts of his past. The idea of family, the crisis of moral and social values, the role of men and women in marriage and the absence of feelings are themes that the film, very discreetly, addresses throughout the story it tells us.
Anyone who wants to see this film should prepare themselves for a long, very visual experience: the film is a grueling two and a half hours long and the action is quite slow. Wenders, who even thought about becoming a painter, likes to work very carefully on the visual and pictorial side of his films, and the slow action allows him, in this specific case, to explore to the maximum the visual beauty of desert scenes or urban landscapes. of Texas, where the action is concentrated. Do I need to say that the choice of sets and filming locations was one of the aspects that I liked most? Thanks to a good cinematography job, each one looks even more beautiful, wild and rude. Harmonizing perfectly with all this, the soundtrack, on guitar, plays a little with the Wild West and with the melodies that we usually associate with the Western style.
In addition to a very well done and solid plot, and good visual and technical values, the film also features the extraordinary work of Harry Dean Stanton. The actor has never been one of those stars that draws crowds, but he has quality and gives us here, probably, the best work of his film career. He is solid and impactful enough to capture our full attention with a minimum of words and facial expressions, and he doesn't say a word or change his facial expression during the first half hour of the film. The film also has excellent contributions from Dean Stockwell and Nastassja Kinski, and even young Hunter Carson does a well-done job. However, the stage is all Stanton's.
