A few weeks ago I re-watched two movies that I was initially very perplexed by. When I first watched these films a little over a year ago I found myself at once curious and fascinated, but I ultimately didn’t know what to make of them. This time around I have new-found respect and admiration for them. The films were “Stalker” (1973) directed by Andrei Tarkovsky (brilliant Russian auteur) and “True Stories” (1986) directed by David Byrne (of the band The Talking Heads). Guess which one I’ve decided to write about.
You’d have to be some kind of “Psycho Killer” from a “Swamp” hellbent on “Burning Down the House” to not enjoy the “Wild, Wild Life” of The Talking Heads (I am not proud of any of that, by the way). I like “The Talking Heads” and I like unusual movies (anything from Kenneth Anger to Alejandro Jodorowsky), but even I was unprepared for the ultra-mellow of “True Stories” and the ineffable affability of tour guide David Byrne. As the tagline insists, “True Stories” is “a completely cool, multi-purpose movie.” This uber-light foray into the realm of film by Byrne is peculiar in a very 80′s music video kind of a way. In the tradition of the Beatles’ “A Hard Day’s Night” (1964), The Who’s “Tommy” (1975), Oingo Boingo’s “Forbidden Zone” (1980), and Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” (1982), “True Stories” is a musical featuring many familiar contemporary tunes (this time by The Talking Heads).The fictitious town of Virgil, Texas is getting ready for their Sesquicentennial Celebration of Special-ness and ten-gallon hat wearing David Byrne can’t help but investigate and share the town and townsfolk with the audience.
Writer-director David Byrne escorts us through the excitement and weird drama amidst the mounting anticipation for celebration all with the utmost of nonthreatening nonchalance. As he pulls into a parking lot in his red convertible he tells the audience that what’s going on inside the building behind him “might be part of Virgil’s Celebration of Special-ness. . . or it might not be.” Byrne introduces us to many odd characters including the lovable bachelor Louis (John Goodman); homespun voodoo doctor Mr. Tucker (Roebuck ‘Pops’ Staples); idiosyncratic but passionate town leader (who is not beyond incorporating a lobster dinner into a visual balletic illustration of how everything works) Earl Culver (Spalding Gray) and his pageant-running wife (whom he never speaks to) Kay Culver (Annie McEnroe); a compulsive liar (Jo Harvey Allen); a conspiracy-theory espousing preacher (John Ingle); and Miss Rollings (Swoosie Kurtz) who is so rich she never has to leave her bed. The movie winds up following all these characters, but perhaps centers mostly around Louis and his quest to find a wife. Byrne wanders in and out of scenes interacting with characters as old friends or new acquaintances and then returns to speaking directly to the audience to prepare us for the Celebration to come.
Byrne seems genuinely fascinated by these strange people and their habits as the film unfolds like some sort of peculiar musical experiment in anthropology. David Byrne claimed that most of the characters of “True Stories” were inspired by “true stories” in local newspapers. The movie features several songs from The Talking Heads including “Wild, Wild Life,” “Dream Operator” (one of my personal favorites from the film, sung by Annie McEnroe as a parade of unusual garments advance along a fashion runway), “Puzzling Evidence,” “Papa Legba,” “People Like Us,” and others. The film is charming and extremely off-beat in its comedy style. So what is the film about? Is it about the town of Virgil? Is it about the music? I think more likely it is about the people that make a town. Byrne displays a weird affection for each and everyone of these people. It’s a calming feeling to simply sit back and watch people with all their quirks and foibles live happily and peacefully without real conflict. Everyone has things on their mind, but everyone also shares the anticipation for the Sesquicentennial Celebration of Special-ness. Amidst it all they are united by one thing. Some have labeled this film as a satirical parody of American small-town life that’s really having fun at the characters’ expense. I disagree. It’s not like Christopher Guest’s playful jab at small-town America in “Waiting for Guffman” (1996). “True Stories” to me feels like a tribute and wistful longing for the American small-town in all its idiosyncratic splendor. David Byrne is celebrating the Special-ness of the American small-town, but he’s not afraid to make it an amusing or enjoyable excursion.
I like what Byrne says as he drives past several average suburban homes at the edge of the town. He says, “Who can say it isn’t beautiful? Sky. . . bricks. Who do you think lives there? Four-car garage. Hope, fear, excitement, satisfaction.” David Byrne makes this place a place to love. The moments where he just drives along in his red convertible with the obviously projected background rolling passed are priceless, humorous, simple, and gentle. That’s the word for this movie! Gentle. It’s a quiet, funny, and gentle ride into an American small-town and we know that life will be just as fine after we leave as when we were there and before we came.
“True Stories” is a very pleasurable cult film with much humor and warmth. It captures the attitudes of pure-hearted small-town Americans and the tempo and sentiment of many a Talking Heads tune. Fans of The Talking Heads, David Byrne, John Goodman, quirky characters, off-beat comedy, or the 80′s really ought to take the time to revisit this gentle, little film. But pay attention. Underneath much of David Byrne’s humorous deadpan narration resonates a sobering echo of tranquility, of how magical even a place as seemingly mundane as Virgil can be. To quote Bill Watterson’s cartoon creation, Calvin, “it’s a magical world, Hobbes.” I’m inclined to think David Byrne agrees.
picture references:
artoftheguillotine.com
filmfanatic.org
ytimg.com
creativebloom.co.uk
