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The Straight Story [VHS] [1999]
 
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The Straight Story [VHS] [1999]

VHS ~ Richard Farnsworth
4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (39 customer reviews)

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Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review
Throughout The Straight Story, 73-year-old Alvin Straight (Richard Farnsworth) gazes calmly at the night sky, as if the stars were reflections of his own memories. When he hears his brother Lyle (Harry Dean Stanton), with whom he hasn't spoken in years, is ailing Alvin decides to go visit him and make peace. But since Alvin's eyesight is bad and his daughter (Sissy Spacek) refuses to drive him, he sets out on the 500-mile journey from Laurens, Iowa to Mt. Zion, Wisconsin on a John Deere lawnmower. It's slow going, so there's plenty of time to stop for the night and ponder the cosmos. Along the way, he befriends a variety of nice folks, and you have to ask yourself: is this really a David Lynch movie?

It's a miracle that this wholesome film was made by a director whose work is often described as twisted and bizarre. But Lynch is too complex an artist to be labelled, and he brings charm, grace and kindness to this story based on a newspaper clipping. Moreover, The Straight Story has a serenity rarely found in movies anymore. It's a film of moments--funny, odd, quietly spiritual--and this simple tale of a man, a lawnmower and rural hospitality becomes a genuine Lynchian odyssey, unlike any film you've seen but as welcoming as a cup of lemon tea with honey. Best of all, it's a fitting tribute to the career of veteran stuntman-actor Farnsworth who, at age 79, plays Alvin Straight to sheer perfection, his face a subtle roadmap to a broad spectrum of emotional destinations. --Jeff Shannon

Synopsis
The true story of how seventy-three year old Alvin Straight, who is determined to make it up with his ailing elder brother, travels the three hundred miles on his lawnmower!

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

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The Straight Story [VHS] [1999] 4.6 out of 5 stars (39)
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Customer Reviews

39 Reviews
5 star:
 (32)
4 star:
 (4)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:
 (2)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.6 out of 5 stars (39 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The Straight Story, 27 Sep 2003
By Mr Ivan Willis (Bournemouth, Dorset United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Straight Story [DVD] [1999] (DVD)
Directed by David Lynch are you sure? No backward talking dwarves, no mutant babies and certainly no damn fine cups of coffee. Anyone expecting a descent further into the demented madness of Lynch's psyche may be somewhat taken aback by the gentle nature of this film. However although influenced by real events this takes on a picaresque fairytale air. The story of Alvin elderly, half blind only able to walk with the use of two walking sticks drives his ancient lawnmower for hundreds of miles to meet his estranged brother who has suffered a stroke.
The late Richard Farnsworth caps a lifetime of hollywood graft as bit player and stuntman with a great natural performance and its a relief to see Sissy Spaceck escape from TV movie banality
to give an affecting performance in a role that develops further than you initially expect.
A quiet emotional film that gives you more faith in humanity than other more obvious contenders. Some small moments of dark Lynch humour still shine through, one cooked meal may upset animal lovers for example. This is a wonderful diversion for David Lynch and its a shame that the DVD has no commentary so we can see how the lost highway diverted to the straight story and then returned to Mulholland Drive and back to dark territory.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Transcendant, 3 Nov 2005
By J. Williams - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Straight Story [DVD] [1999] (DVD)
I can't really add much to what's already been said - all the reviews are spot on. All I can say is that this mesmerising film is one of the most beautifully realised and humane visions I have ever seen. Indeed I've seen nothing since that's affected me quite so deeply. Lynch has surpassed himself. The peformances are outstanding - especially of course 'Alvin' himself. The cinematography alone deserves a medal for services to humanity, and the all-pervading sense of both the value of reconciliation and the enduring nature of love are captured like no other film I have seen so far this century. Profound. Flawless.
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26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Lost for Words, 12 Jan 2002
This review is from: The Straight Story [DVD] [1999] (DVD)
I don't think a film has ever affected me like this, and am so pleased to read that other reviewers have felt the same. I'm a bit shocked, actually. I never realised that a film could do this.

The Striaght Story is beautiful. Gentle, good natured and heartwarming, it says all there is to say about the triumph of the human spirit, and the kindness of strangers. Alvin's journey across three states, on the back of a ride-on lawnmower, is told at such a slow pace, and often Alvin is the only person on screen, surrounded by mile after mile of landscape stretching off into the horizon. This just emphasises the whole point of the film: one man's mission to do what he feels is right. Refusing help along the way, even insisting on sleeping in someone's shed instead of in the house when he's forced to rely on others when the lawnmower breaks down, Alvin is a true gentleman. The stories he tells, and characters he meets, bring a genuinely warm glow of happiness and truth. Telling a young runaway of his daughter's sad personal history, chatting about war experiences in a bar with a fellow oldtimer, this film has more to say about humanity than any I think I have ever seen.

Cinematography is perfection. The music is perfection: Angelo Badalamenti does it again, recapturing the evocative nature of the Twin Peaks soundtrack. Just listen to the simple use of strings when Alvin tells his daughter's story. I promise there won't be a dry eye in the house. There certainly wasn't in mine, anyway.

Completely unsentimental, this film is ideal for making you feel glad to be alive. Absolutely uplifting. I don't understand why it didn't win every award going. I didn't want it to end.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars He Rode and he Rode and he...........
At the Osacar awards in 2000, Richard Farnsworth was nominated for the best actor award for his role in "The Straight Story"(99). Read more
Published 3 months ago by Bob Salter

5.0 out of 5 stars A film about real people
Of course, the five-star rating here is a personal appraisal. This is not mainstream Hollywood and, in the opinion of this writer, is better for it. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Rolling Stone

4.0 out of 5 stars Slow Lane Blues
I was afraid that this tale of someone driving a lawnmower across part of the USA would be dull. It is not dull. Read more
Published 14 months ago by ianrmillard

5.0 out of 5 stars What's the worst thing about being old, Alvin?
Asks one of a group of cyclists of the central character in this quiet, classy film. 'Being able to remember when you were young' answers Alvin wryly. Read more
Published 20 months ago by patashnik

5.0 out of 5 stars David Lynch can make Beautiful Movies too
The Straight Story is a film about an old man named Alvin Straight who hasn't talked to his brother Lyle in ten years because they said some "unforgiving things to one another. Read more
Published on 16 Jul 2007 by Kasey Driscoll

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful film
What can I possibly add to the praising wording that the majority of these reviewers already have put forth? Read more
Published on 16 Jun 2007 by A musician

2.0 out of 5 stars far too straight story
I love unusual films, and was really excited about this one arriving, but I struggled to keep awake. Read more
Published on 17 Mar 2007 by Fire Watcher

5.0 out of 5 stars An absolutely fantastic film, less is more etc...
I am a 23 yr old alpha male type (red blooded, full of testosterone type) and about 4 years ago I saw this film in my mothers VHS collection, and I asked her 'what was that film... Read more
Published on 17 Dec 2006 by S. Fergusson

5.0 out of 5 stars Can I give this six stars?
It is tempting, surely, to interpret the title of this movie literally: that after the weirdness of Eraserhead, Blue Velvet et al Lynch had gone 'straight', creating a simple, yet... Read more
Published on 18 May 2006 by James Choles

5.0 out of 5 stars A film to treasure
An utterly beguiling, gentle drama. A bit slow moving, like Alvin Straight's lawnmower, but stick with him - he has a lot to teach us all! Read more
Published on 15 April 2006 by Mr. F. L. Shepheard

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