« EIs the American dream at its end? Does anyone really dream it anymore, or does only cinema continue to dream it? Would it even exist without cinema? Isn’t America an invention of cinema? Would there be the dream of America in the world without cinema?” This quote from Wim Wenders is taken from an essay published in 1987 by Éditions de L’Arche: Emotion Pictures. It demonstrates the German director’s fascination with America. The European actually lived in the United States for six years.
Palme d’Or at Cannes in 1984, Paris, Texas is his declaration of love to this vast country with its wide open spaces, magnified so many times on screen and which he himself filmed several times. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of this masterpiece, Tamasa Distribution is re-releasing it in theaters in a new 4K restoration: the opportunity was too good to miss to talk about this legendary film with another great filmmaker, Claire Denis, who was at the time Wenders’ first assistant director.
In this capacity, his role was to ensure the smooth running of the shoots as a link between the director, the production manager (responsible for financing) and the entire set (technicians, actors, management, etc.). A colossal task, carried out in the shadows and often thankless. On Paris, TexasClaire Denis was thus in charge of the locations, the work plan, the organization of the logistics… And was in the front row of this Homeric adventure. Historic hurricane on its arrival in Texas, filming under financial pressure, roads as far as the eye can see crisscrossed far and wide, the grace of Nastassja Kinski despite her hair problems… The director bears witness to a rock’n’roll, magical and unforgettable journey.
Le Point Pop : How did you come to collaborate with Wim Wenders on Paris, Texas ?
Claire Denis: I was in Lisbon, Portugal, working as an assistant on the set of an HBO TV movie directed by Clive Donner, Operation Windsor (To Catch a King1983). Wim Wenders called me at the hotel one morning. At first I didn’t believe it. I thought it was a joke at first, because I had seen and loved his early films, like Alice in the Cities (1974). He was part of a new generation of German filmmakers, like Rainer Werner Fassbinder, whose freedom I admired. He asked me if I would like to work with him. He was looking for an assistant director.
And I accepted his offer. My only fear was that my English would not be fluent enough. My German was very rudimentary. But fortunately Wim spoke French and English fluently. I later learned that Paris, Texas was a German film co-produced by France, in this case by Argos Films founded by Anatole Dauman. [le producteur de L’Empire des sens et du Tambour, NDLR]. So I understood that Wim needed a quota of French people in his team – which explains in particular the presence of Aurore Clément in the casting.
How was your first meeting with him?
I went to see him in Houston in 1983. I arrived there with three suitcases because I didn’t know how long I would stay in the United States. Wim was waiting for me at the airport with a moustache, a goatee and a ponytail – he looked like Buffalo Bill! He was dressed like a Texan. And I had shaved my head. I barely had an inch of hair on my head. And the first thing he asked me was if I was sick! He thought I was coming out of chemotherapy (laughs).
Is there an event that left a lasting impression on you during your stay in the United States?
Twenty-four hours after our meeting, Wim had to leave for New Mexico to work with the film’s screenwriter, actor and playwright Sam Shepard. So I was left alone in my room at the Holiday Inn in downtown Houston. And suddenly, around midnight, my windows started shaking! A torrential downpour caused a power outage. I saw a large billboard fly away in front of my window on the thirty-seventh floor of the building! The phone rang and the hotel operator asked me to go down to the reception as quickly as possible.
He tells me, “Alicia is here!” Since there is no elevator, I run down the stairs. And when I get to the reception, I discover that a huge hurricane is hitting the city the day after I arrive in the United States. [l’ouragan Alicia est un cyclone tropical qui a frappé le Texas et causé d’importants dégâts le 15 août 1983, NDLR] ! Planes were crashing into the hangars at the Houston airport! There was broken glass everywhere. I hadn’t watched TV or listened to the radio. I was completely surprised. I had to quickly acclimatize to the situation. It was a kind of baptism before the start of filming. It broke the ice.
In Paris, Texaswe wander along the railway tracks. We come across endless roads. Where did you find these incredible sets, these wide open spaces like John Ford, these cinematic territories?
We did a lot of scouting. We took the main road south and crossed the country from east to west. Every day, we set off in the car with a map, without the help of a GPS. We went to Louisiana and Arizona, to Phoenix. To almost all the cities in Texas from north to south, including Dallas, then to the Mexican border. Not to mention the Mojave Desert in southern California. We took a lot of photos. We stopped at night in motels. I also had a little logbook with a list of all the settings we had found. For example, we discovered the gas station with the diplodocus! Oil fields with pump jacks. Over the course of this trip, I formed a great friendship with Wim. It was a very strong moment for me.
Nastassja is beauty, grace. She was only on set for seven days. And in just one week, she lit up the whole film. She is magical.
From the very first shots, we know that we are dealing with a great film. The work of a true filmmaker. Where was the incredible opening of Paris, Texas ?
We flew over the Big Bend territory in a small plane, a desert plain on the course of the Rio Grande, on the border between Mexico and the United States. We came across a magnificent red canyon nicknamed The Devil’s Graveyard and Wim decided that this would be where the film would begin, with aerial shots from a helicopter. Bob Dylan was originally supposed to sign the music. Since he couldn’t, it was finally Ry Cooder who composed the soundtrack with his famous slide guitar chords.
Can you tell us a word about Harry Dean Stanton, whose first leading role this was in a film, he who was mainly known as a supporting actor?
Harry Dean is an extraordinary actor, who was very shy and withdrawn. He was afraid of not being young enough to play Nastassja Kinski’s husband. In the film, he plays Travis, a man who reappears one day in the middle of the desert when he was thought to have been dead for four years. He gradually gets back in touch with his family. First with his brother (Dean Stockwell), then with his son (Hunter Carson), a 7-year-old boy. He decides to leave with his child in search of his wife, Jane (Nastassja Kinski), the love of his life, who abandoned him…
Wenders had given Nastassja Kinski her film debut at the age of 13 in Wrong move (1975). He finds her again nine years later for Paris, Texas.
When Nastassja arrived, she was a brunette. She had just finished Andrei Konchalovsky’s film, Maria’s Lovers (1984). The makeup artist had planned a blonde wig for her. And this actress had such beautiful hair that I thought it was a shame. I said to Wim: “We can’t put that haystack on her head!” Kinski looked at me and laughed and agreed to bleach it. She understood that it was worth it. She trusted us completely. For me it was enchanting. Nastassja is beauty, grace. She only stayed seven days. And in just one week, she lit up the whole film. She is magic.
Wim always kept his calm. He refused to show anxiety and bad mood on the set.
In Passport to HollywoodMichel Ciment’s book of interviews, Wenders reveals that the filming of the movie was postponed several times: “It was complicated to organize the financing in Europe to shoot it in the United States. We finally had to do it with 25% less than planned. The film ultimately cost a million and a half dollars.”
The script was in three parts. It was very long. And during the shooting, there was no more money. We were short of time. And there were also problems with dates and the availability of the actors. We had to shorten the script. The film was in danger of getting bogged down. But I couldn’t accept that we had gone so far in the depths of Texas and that everything was going to stop. There were so many obstacles that I had to learn to overcome the challenges with Wim. Every day, we had to find solutions and solve all the problems. I think I learned a lot from this experience. I often got angry. Wim, on the other hand, always kept his calm. He refused to show anxiety and bad mood on the set.
How were the two sequences in the peep-show booth in Houston where Harry Dean Stanton and Nastassja Kinski are separated by a one-way mirror filmed? It’s like being in a confessional.
Originally, in the first draft of the script, Travis’ character found his wife living with a preacher. But that whole part was cut. So we had to find another ending. So the screenwriter came up with the peep show scene. We found one in Louisiana at the last minute. It was in a casino town. We built the booth where Harry Dean Stanton stays in the shadows. Nastassja, on the other hand, only saw her own reflection in the mirror. She played in front of a mirror. All she could hear was her partner’s voice. But the emotion was palpable on screen. The end of filming was heartbreaking for the whole team.
Three years later, you worked once again with Wim Wenders on Wings of Desire (1987).
Yes, after winning the Palme d’Or in 1984 with Paris, TexasWim was very excited! He grew wings, if I may say so… He invited me to join him on the set of his new film in Berlin. But I only worked as an assistant on the first part of the Wings of Desirethe black and white part. Not the color part. Because I had to go to Cameroon in 1987 to shoot my first feature film, Chocolatwith Isaach de Bankolé and François Cluzet. But that’s another story…
Paris, Texas by Wim Wenders. 2 h 25. Released July 3.
Carlotta will publish this fall an ultra-collector’s box set of Paris, Texas in 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray. With a bonus book about the film. Thanks to Gaspar Noé.
