|
| 
| Director: David Lynch
Actors: Richard Farnsworth, Sissy Spacek, Jane Galloway Heitz, Joseph A. Carpenter, Donald Wiegert
Studio: Walt Disney Video
List Price: $14.99
Buy Used: $0.50
You Save: $14.49 (97%)
New (4) Used (29) Collectible (7) from $0.50
Rating:  218 reviews
Sales Rank: 5941
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Ntsc
Rating: G (General Audience)
Media: VHS Tape
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 112 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 6305810109
UPC: 786936114140
EAN: 9780788822872
ASIN: 6305810109
Theatrical Release Date: 2000
Release Date: November 7, 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: tape only comes in rental box with no art work GREAT ITEM SHIPPED WITH TRACKING INFO SHIPPED FROM OREGON Used - Acceptable
|
| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 26-30 of 218
 If you have no room in your life for sentiment April 20, 2002
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
you might as well be dead. This is a beautiful movie. I'll admit that it is really American, though. One of the most American movies ever made. If you want to try to understand our people, you can start here. I will guarantee that it's less stressful than trying to understand Arabs.
Not a Plug For John Deere May 19, 2004
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
A film that showcases something that has been missing from films...decency. THE STRAIGHT STORY also shows a peaceful, laidback, and beautiful America. David Lynch pulls back (way, way, back) from his bizarro world and tells a story (based on a true account) that is heartfelt without being a tearjerker. Richard Farnsworth (perfectly cast and deserved his best actor nomination) plays Alvin Straight a geriatric in Iowa who decides to visit and reconcile with his estranged and ailing brother Lyle (Harry Dean Stanton) in Wisconsin. His transportation of choice is a John Deere riding lawn mower with trailer in tow (because his eyes are too bad for driving a car and he doesn't trust the driver of a bus). Along the way he meets up with kind folk who are sympathetic, non-judgemental yet curious, and helpful to Alvin's cause and journey. They too learn something. Also, the cinematography of the vast farming landescapes, small towns, and country backroads are some of the best parts of the movie. The pacing of the film is breezy and low-key allowing the viewer to relax and "ride" along with Farnsworth/Alvin's experiences with no indication of surprises or harm to the character (except for a couple of occasions of the riding mower breaking down or stalling). Overall, a film with the commentary of determination, a simple way of life, and that decency can still be a film's selling point.
Not For Everyone September 18, 2004
Robert Scheib (San Jose, CA)
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
A dying Richard Farnsworth gives the performance of his life as the dying Alvin Straight--a simple (but far from simple-minded) man who wants to put right as much as he can, and take one last long look at the world, before he moves on. If that doesn't sound like your cup of tea, then it probably isn't--this is the kind of movie that you really have to be in the mood for, and for which some people never are. I happened to see it after a tough week of work, struggling to fix things that really shouldn't have been my responsibility and dealing with duplicitous managers who seemed to spend most of their time shifting blame. This gave me a wonderful sense of relief from my own stupid little problems, and some perspective about what really is important.
 Poignant and Moving February 18, 2005
C. O. DeRiemer (San Antonio, Texas, USA)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
In my book this is an excellent movie, but one you just have to relax into and let unfold. The movie isn't so much about Alvin Straight as it is about the people he meets and how they interact with him as he slowly journeys to see his brother. I think it's one of David Lynch's best movies, but one for which the average Lynch fan will probably walk away shaking his head. Nothing much happens and a lot happens. The things that happen have to do with how people see each other and how they change. Richard Farnsworth, who was old and sick himself, plays with great dignity the old and sick Alvin Straight. If you watch this movie with an open mind, I think you'll be affected by it.
The Straight Story January 12, 2006
Grinalltheway
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
If you are considering buying/renting/watching "The Straight Story", you should know that people are not lying when they tell you that it is nothing but an old guy (played by Richard Farnsworth) who decides to make a 300+ mile trip on his small riding lawnmower. He meets a lot of nice ordinary people, he dispenses a little sage advice, he reflects a little on his life, and nothing much happens to him. It is closely based on a real event that was newsworthy not because of what happened to Alvin Straight on his journey, but because of the human-interest angle of a guy making a journey in such a unique way.
David Lynch does a nice job of directing this Disney production, but do not expect a lot of wild expressionistic developments.
A lot of people really like this film and a lot of other people are asking, "why do people like this movie so much"? And they are the polite ones. Less polite ones are branding the film "manipulative" which seems like a strange criticism for a film. Aren't they supposed to be manipulative? Don't people watch films to be manipulated? If you insist on viewing "The Straight Story" and if you generally know what you are getting into, you should enjoy it. If you are looking for its deeper meanings I suggest that you watch it along with Monte Hellman's "Two Lane Blacktop". Both are road pictures and Alvin Straight's orientation as a young man was probably not much different than the driver (James Taylor) in that film. The difference is the stage of life in which the journey is being taken. Both have an intended destination. But for the driver in "Two Lane Blacktop" it is just a excuse to keep on the move, the highway stretches out endlessly before him and life is a journey not a destination. For Straight it is a single-minded trip that he views as his last chance to mend fences with his brother who has just had a serious stroke. It is very likely the last trip he will ever make but he does not savor the journey, he does not take satisfaction in overcoming obstacles, or even find much pleasure in his positive encounters with strangers. For him the destination is all important.
This was Farnsworth's last picture, in declining health he committed suicide by gunshot a few months after the film's release. One can't help but speculate on whether he was aware during filming that "The Straight Story" would be the final act in his long career, and how much of that realization was incorporated into his performance.
Straight's journey is a lot like that of Ned Merrill (Burt Lancaster) in "The Swimmer". Merrill got it into his head that he could restore things to how they were in his idyllic past if he could just swim home one afternoon through the backyards of his wealthy Connecticut suburb, using his neighbors' pools. Straight is not that delusional but he has come to believe that his brother will remain alive and be waiting for him as long as he stubbornly sticks to his original idea of traveling by mower.
His other motivation for insisting on this means of travel (he won't take a bus and he turns down a ride for the last 60 miles) is to demonstrate how sincerely he wants to reconcile. If you give someone a horse it will be a lot more impressive if it is your only horse and it means that now you will have to walk. To walk is part of the gift.
Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.
|
|
|
We'll be adding even more exciting features to assist you in the coming year.
Thank you for shopping at the Depot.com online shopping depot.
©2008 Depot.com | |
