Oscar Got It Wrong!: Best Actor 1999

The Contenders:

Kevin Spacey: American Beauty (winner)
Denzel Washington: The Hurricane
Russell Crowe: The Insider
Richard Farnsworth: The Straight Story
Sean Penn: Sweet and Lowdown

The Real Lawnmower Man

Film: The Straight Story
Format: DVD from Moline Public Library through interlibrary loan on laptop.

I tend to like David Lynch’s films, but I also tend to want a long time between them. Lynch is great in small doses, not so much as a constant diet. The Straight Story is one that I wasn’t sure how to approach. On the one hand, this is a Lynch film distributed by Disney and given a G-rating. On the other hand, this is the film that Lynch declares is his “most experimental.” When someone like Lynch says that, there are a couple of possible reactions. If he’s telling the truth, we’re in for a rough trip. Then again, there’s always the chance that he’s just messing with us.

The Straight Story is one of those titles that has multiple meanings. It is, in fact, a straight story. There’s no rising action here, no complications on the basic plot. There’s something set in motion at the beginning of the film, and the rest of the film gets us from that to the end. It’s also the David Lynch film that is the most direct in terms of its narrative. And it’s also the story of Alvin Straight (played here by Oscar nominee Richard Farnsworth).