The Straight Story

Some may feel that The Straight Story was a strange film for a director like David Lynch to take on.

To qualify the above statement let me provide you with a brief, potted history of David Lynch’s career. This is the director that gave us strange, dark imagery (Eraserhead, The Elephant Man), sudden outbursts of violence (Blue Velvet), general weirdness (Twin Peaks, On the Air). And then The Straight Story.

This is the true story of Alvin Straight who on the surface seems as far removed from Lynch's typical stomping ground as one could get. However the film proves that Lynch can deliver in both the homespun as well as the abstract.

The story centers on Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth, Spartacus, Misery, and many other films). Straight and his brother Lyle have not spoken in ten years. Then Straight receives a call that Lyle is stricken with a stroke, so he decides that it is time to mend things with his brother.

Alvin Straight is a proud and resilient man. His hips are sore, but he refuses to use a frame, instead opting for two canes. His eyesight is bad, so he lost his driving license. He will not accept a ride to Mt. Zion, Wisconsin, where his brother lives. Instead, he decides to ride his lawnmower – yes lawnmower - from his home in Laurens, Iowa, to Mt. Zion, a trek of over 250 miles. It is something that he must do he feels, to make things right.

It is along this journey that Lynch reveals the real heart of this film and perhaps what he feels is the real heart of America. Along the way Straight encounters a number of different people, from a young runaway, to a group of bicyclists, to a John Deere salesman. Through his conversations with these people, he seems to touch them in a very special way.

He is very trusting, soft spoken, and always willing to help. Farnsworth gives a superb performance full of both emotion and love, which pulls on the heartstring. His lines are delivered with a grace and style that can only be achieved after decades of fine work in the industry.
The music in the film adds to the ethereal, wispy, and ominous tone. However, for the most part, the music follows a simple melody that plays while Straight continues on his journey.

An added poignancy is attached to the film as Farnsworth himself passed away in 2000.
Despite its intimate story line, The Straight Story is a big-screen movie. Once Alvin sets out on his little green tractor, Lynch and cinematographer Freddie Francis turn the movie into an ode to the open road. I found elements of the cinematography awe inspiring at times as the camera swept over the wide open plains of Wisconsin and Iowa

To add authenticity, the film was shot along the route taken by the real Alvin Straight.

A lot of Lynch fans will probably not like The Straight Story. It will feel for them too much like a homage to self virtue, showing, in the process, an unalloyed affection for the flapjack side of America that we’re used to seeing Lynch parody. But I prefer comparing this film to the career of a musician. Lynch has put down his electric guitar and gone back to playing, for now, a heartfelt acoustic set.