One of the most visually ravishing movies of the 1980s gets the big-screen treatment with this 40th anniversary 4K restoration of Wim Wenders’ masterpiece Paris, Texas.
The film follows the mysterious, nearly mute drifter Travis (a magnificent Harry Dean Stanton, whose face is a landscape all its own) as he tries to reconnect with his young son and his missing wife (Nastassja Kinski). From this simple setup, director Wenders and screenwriter Sam Shepard produce a powerful statement on codes of masculinity and the myth of the American family, as well as an exquisite visual exploration of a vast, crumbling world of canyons and neon.
The movie abounds with A-list talent doing career-best work:
- — German director Wim Wenders has a sizeable handful of masterpieces to his credit, and this is definitely one of them.
- — Playwright Sam Shepard wrote the film on a hot streak, following his hugely successful stage plays True West and Fool For Love.
- — The always-excellent Harry Dean Stanton was never better than in this rare starring role, which was his favorite among his own films.
- — Ry Cooder’s deeply atmospheric, highly influential slide-guitar soundtrack jump-started his career as a film composer, and remains his best.
- — The great cinematographer Robby Muller (Down By Law, Breaking the Waves) took a familiar landscape and created something entirely new and compelling.
- — Nastassja Kinski’s final monologue may be her very best moment on film.
Here’s your chance to see a visually incomparable film presented in a newly restored version on a big screen. Why wouldn’t you come see it?