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Reviews
The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982)
Good but not as good as the 1934 Film with Leslie Howard
The best dramas are the ones with the best bad guy and Raymond Massey with his screen presence and withering glare beats Ian McKellen. You just don't forget Raymond Massey who plays, as Pauline Kael once said about another villain in another drama, the Prince of Darkness himself.
The 1934 film picks up sometime after Percy has assumed the role of the Scarlet Pimpernel and his effeminate cover, so you see his beautiful and longing wife wishing for the "old" Percy who was a "man", not this effeminate "fop". The 1982 movie shows this effeminacy before, during, and after their courtship so you don't feel so much for the wife since she married the guy with his effeminate side to begin with. Not as an effective portrayal of their relationship. I felt the ardor between them more in the 1934 film than the 1982 film - more believable.
I liked Howard as Percy's Pimpernel more than Andrews . Although the 1934 didn't have the length and some of the detail the 1982 had, I still felt Howard's characterization was more compelling then Andrews. I thought Howard's comic timing was perfect. He used phrases like "sink me" sparingly but effectively and humorously. Andrews used that line too much and it lost its effectiveness. Howard moved well in and out of the effeminate cover pretty convincingly whereas I felt Andrews sometimes got stuck in the effeminate thing and the glass monocle thing while he was plotting with his friends and other times when he didn't need the cover.
I like the supporting cast better in the 1934 film, especially Nigel Bruce as the Prince of Wales and the portrayal of the restless Robespierre. I thought the end was better in the 1934 film. More dramatic, sharper.
Sometimes less is more, as I think that is true between the 1934 and 1982 films. Both are wonderful, but if you've seen the 1934 film first you may be a bit disappointed in the 1982 version.
Paris, Texas (1984)
The Artistry Cannot Overcome The Unrealistic and Emotionally Vacant Story
The art as others have said, is great - the Ry Cooder soundtrack, linear, no-frills screenplay, and heartfelt acting. But the story itself leaves a lot to be desired.
The main character (Travis) comes out of almost literally nowhere and we find out he's abandoned his wife and child who was subsequently also abandoned by his mom, Travis' wife. Meanwhile, Travis' Brother and Sister-In-Law have taken in the child and love and care for him like he was their own. The boy in now part of their family. Lucky boy.
Travis' brother takes in Travis who needs time to recover from four years of apparent drunken disappearance somewhere in the desert. Meanwhile Travis gets a chance to at least get to know and possibly reconcile with his boy. Lucky Travis.
In getting to know his boy, Travis starts meeting his boy at school and at some point, he and his boy playfully match each other's strides and steps on the way home. This part is pretty cool and I agree with one reviewer who said that walk home should have ended the movie, fading as they disappear on their way to the boy's home
But no. Instead, Travis who is basically a stranger to his boy takes him without the boy's family knowledge or permission to go find Travis' wife and the boy's mother. Basically kidnapping. The boy's mother knows where he's been living but has made no attempt to connect with him.
So, is Travis some kind of emotional hero by basically kidnapping the boy he had abandoned from the boy's loving and dedicated family to find his wife and the boy's mother who also abandoned the boy? Leaving the boy's family desperate and to know where the boy is and deeply hurt once they find out?
The mother it turns out works in a peep show. The possible reconciliation between Travis and his wife had possibilities, but there was little emotional energy there. Instead, Travis leaves his boy in the hands of the boy's stranger-mother and leaves again for who knows where.
Unrealistic and emotionally empty story. Any normal boy would have longed to be back with the family that was devoted to him and actually loved him. As one reviewer said, this is a flawed story of a guy, Travis, sacrificing his boy on the altar of his attempt at his own restoration and redemption.
The glitter of art cannot overcome your gut and conscience when the story doesn't make sense and runs over characters you care about without explanation or solution. The movie left me flat.