The Straight Story (1999)

Coming Out at 15 October 1999 in theaters.

Biography, Drama

The Straight Story is a biographical road drama film directed by David Lynch. The film was edited and produced by Mary Sweeney, Lynch’s longtime partner and collaborator. She co-wrote the script with John E. Roach. The film is based on the true story of Alvin Straight’s 1994 journey across Iowa and Wisconsin on a lawn mower. Alvin (Richard Farnsworth) is an elderly World War II veteran who lives with his daughter Rose (Sissy Spacek), a kind woman with an intellectual disability. When he hears that his estranged brother Lyle (Harry Dean Stanton) has suffered a stroke, Alvin makes up his mind to go visit him and hopefully make amends before he dies. Because Alvin’s legs and eyes are too impaired for him to receive a driving license, he hitches a trailer to his recently purchased thirty-year-old John Deere 110 Lawn Tractor, having a maximum speed of about 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h) and sets off on the 240 miles (390 km) journey from Laurens, Iowa to Mount Zion, Wisconsin.

The film was a critical success and garnered audience acclaim, although the overall gross proved less than expected. Reviewers praised the intensity of the character performances, particularly the realistic dialogue which film critic Roger Ebert compared to the works of Ernest Hemingway. It received a nomination for the Palme d’Or at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival and Farnsworth received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor.

Director: David Lynch

Writers: John Roach, Mary Sweeney

Stars: Richard Farnsworth, Sissy Spacek, Jane Galloway Heitz, Donald Wiegert, Richard Farnsworth, Tracey Maloney, Dan Flannery

Cast

Sissy Spacek	…	Rose
Jane Galloway Heitz	…	Dorothy
Joseph A. Carpenter	…	Bud
Donald Wiegert	…	Sig
Richard Farnsworth	…	Alvin
Tracey Maloney	…	Nurse
Dan Flannery	…	Doctor Gibbons
Jennifer Edwards-Hughes	…	Brenda
Ed Grennan	…	Pete
Jack Walsh	…	Apple
Max the Wonder Dog	…	Farm Dog
Gil Pearson	…	Bus Driver
Barbara June Patterson	…	Woman on Bus
Everett McGill	…	Tom the John Deere Dealer
Anastasia Webb	…	Crystal
Matt Guidry	…	Steve
Bill McCallum	…	Rat
Barbara E. Robertson	…	Deer Woman
James Cada	…	Danny Riordan
Sally Wingert	…	Darla Riordan
Barbara Kingsley	…	Janet Johnson
Jim Haun	…	Johnny Johnson
Wiley Harker	…	Verlyn Heller
Randy Wiedenhoff	…	Fireman #1
Jerry E. Anderson	…	Fireman #2
Kevin P. Farley	…	Harald
John Farley	…	Thorvald
John Lordan	…	Priest
Garrett Sweeney	…	Boy in Truck
Peter Sweeney	…	Boy in Truck
Tommy Fahey	…	Boy in Truck
Matt Fahey	…	Boy in Truck
Dan Fahey	…	Boy in Truck
Russ Reed	…	Mt. Zion Bartender
Leroy Swadley	…	Bar Patron
Ralph Feldhacker	…	Farmer on Tractor
Harry Dean Stanton	…	Lyle
Stephen Cinabro	…	Policeman
Gary D’Amico	…	Cyclist #1
George A. Farr	…	Wendell
Jeremy Kent Jackson	…	Andy
Lana Schwab	…	Old Lady #1