Earlier in the year in Australia, we had a federal election and the main conservative coalition won. People were quick to blame the state of Queensland, which is probably our equivalent of Texas. A lot of this blame is built around thinking they're greedy people who are fools by voting for a party that doesn't truly have their interests in minds. I despise this rhetoric. If the main centrist party engaged better with the community and address their needs there wouldn't be such a division which lets parties that use fear-mongering to gain political traction.
True Stories is the best example of a movie I have seen that exemplifies the similarities between city and country people. We are all quirky, looking for love, have a family, have issues with our families, love our communities, the events in our communities, like going shopping, etc. As much as True Stories is about promoting Talking Head's latest album it's a love letter to the people of Texas.
The film takes an (observational) documentary approach as David Byrne is the only talking to the camera while the rest of the characters are simply observed. We get to see them have fun in a communal karaoke, enjoy a parade, and go shopping. Byrne layers the film with boisterous characters that give you a warm feeling inside. John Goodman plays a man with a "consistent panda bear shape" who is looking for a wife. Even myself, who doesn't believe in the idea of marriage, couldn't help but be confounded by the lovable nature of his character.
Occasionally you can tell Byrne is not a director with some weird edits scattered throughout. At one moment it felt like a Neil Breen cut. Though I actually felt like it was a good cut. Ed Lachman the cinematographer (Carol, The Virgin Suicides) captures the eccentricity associated with Byrne while adventurous of the landscape and the colourful lives of the characters. This results in a film that not only needs to be listened to loud of its music but seen on a large screen for its visual elegance.
True Stories is a movie about common people, even if it is told by one of the kookiest people in the media. What obsession people have that should feel material end up becoming the backbone to our admiration for the characters. So please, don't forget that those who live in far and isolated places, even when they are terrible people have actual human features too and True Stories is a perfect example of the universal features of mankind. Funny, Talking Heads music, and good moods, what else do you want from a movie?
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True Stories was recently restored and released by The Criterion Collection
