Touching 'Straight Story' shows unique Lynch work

Film critics and average filmgoers alike often associate the name David Lynch with the bizarre and grotesque, recalling his films "Eraserhead," "Blue Velvet" and "Lost Highway," and his TV series "Twin Peaks." What might be the most bizarre thing about Lynch now, however, is the about face he does from his erotic masterpieces with his latest film - the G-rated "The Straight Story."

Gone from "The Straight Story" are the thematic trappings we're used to - the deviant sexuality, the suburban mask over the dark interior - which he replaces with an endearing portrait of septuagenarian Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth) on a bildungsroman. Instead of undermining this journey as you might expect, Lynch pays homage to Straight and his seemingly herculean task.

Courtesy of Buena Vista Pictures Richard Farnsworth (pictured with Sissy Spacek) travels from Iowa to Wisconsin on a '66 John Deere in "The Straight Story."

After learning that his estranged brother Lyle (Harry Dean Stanton in a cameo) has fallen ill, Alvin - who has to walk with two crutches - decides that he has to make amends with Lyle. The problem is that Alvin's eyesight is too poor for him to drive, he doesn't have the money for a bus or airplane and he has to make the trip by himself. Alvin is so stubborn that he won't let anyone talk him out of going and won't let anyone help, even though he has no conceivable way of getting from Iowa to Wisconsin.

Alvin surprises everyone, though, when he builds a trailer and attaches it to his riding mower. When his first attempt goes bust, Alvin heads to his friendly John Deere dealer, Tom (Lynch staple Everett McGill), and purchases his new steed, a '66 John Deere that moves five miles per hour.

The story Lynch tells, based on Alvin's real-life journey and John Roach and Mary Sweeney's (who also produced and edited the film, as she does for most of her common law husband Lynch's films) script, is slow but possesses extreme emotional beauty. Alvin is a man with a dark past, who has had to deal with many emotional traumas and has pushed them aside. This journey represents for him the opportunity to purge many of the demons that tear at him.

During the course of the movie Alvin sheds no tears as he encounters various people on his odyssey. The hurt he suffers is so deep and he's told his stories so many times that he can't cry. He lives with his dark past everyday, whether it be his daughter, Rose (Sissy Spacek, who hasn't been so great in years), who lost her children because of her oddities, or his memories of World War II and his alcoholism.

Instead telling us of his sorrows, Lynch shows them to us through his elaborate direction. In one terrific scene he shows Alvin and Rose watching a rain storm and the shadows of the raindrops running down Alvin's face moments before the call comes that Lyle has had a stroke.

Lynch unfolds the story slowly, which sometimes hurts "The Straight Story." It feels like "The Slow Story" at times as the film crawls along at '66 John Deere pace. For the most part, however, the pacing works because of Lynch's clever storytelling. At one point Lynch uses the conventional shot of showing the traveller and craning up to the sky (very common in this film), before returning down to show the hero at the horizon. Lynch adjusts this shot for his purposes, though, and only shows Alvin a few feet further along.

"The Straight Story" often rests largely on Farnsworth's shoulders, and the aging stunt man turned actor handles this admirably in what is arguably the best male performance this year. Farnsworth can't act much with his body and the dialogue is sparse, so he relies on his eyes to reveal much of his character. Farnsworth's eyes show not only Alvin's confidence, but also his pain and love.

The complexity of Farnsworth's performance doesn't overshadow the other fine performances in the film, but only complements them. Both Spacek and James Cada do fine work in the two larger supporting roles. John and Kevin Farley also add humor to the film as a pair of bickering lawnmower repairmen.

The acting occasionally is hampered by the normally precise Angelo Badalamenti's awkward and maudlin score. There are times when Badalamenti's ambling score fits the movie, but it seems to work counter to a movie that is trying not to be overly emotional.

Overall, though, "The Straight Story" marks a bold new direction in Lynch's work. Long-time Lynch fans might desire his darker work, but "The Straight Story" gives new possibilities for one of film's most innovative and provocative artists.

11-05-99