Title: The lawnmower man
Product review: After his skewering of American suburbia in 1986's "Blue Velvet," you'd hardly expect a love letter to Americana from bizarro director David Lynch. But that's just what we got in 1999: a G-rated slice-of-life telling the true story of Alvin Straight, an elderly man who traveled from Iowa to Wisconsin to visit his estranged, ailing brother--via riding lawn mower. As Alvin, veteran character actor Richard Farnsworth etches a fascinating portrait of a man in the twilight of life with the resolve of a pit bull. He also has one monologue about World War II that is more powerful than anything in "Saving Private Ryan." Couple that with fine support from Sissy Spacek as Straight's daughter, and director Lynch has made a quiet triumph.
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