L'homme dans l'ombre

Sissy Spacek has this kind of part down pat, so praise comes too matter-of-fact. I liked the 'Aw Shucks" charm of Eric Roberts as the sailor who receives a 'Dear John" telephone call, and once he disappeared from the film, a lot of its life fizzled away. It's a small film with limited exposition, so that the dinner scene with the boys substituting their long lost father for the departed Teddy seemed to come from almost nowhere. Then despite all of their wailing, they gladly fall in with Mom's desire to move to San Antonio. Then it is headlong into a scene that is part To Kill A Mockingbird and part Straw Dogs.

The problem with the script, and I suspect the screenwriter realized this, is that the Raggedy Man sails too close to Boo Radley, and so the plot must steer away from devices like having the boys be afraid of him. Yet he cannot disappear, so we have shots of him lurking about, or shots of his shop, lest we forget he is part of the story.

I think the film would have worked without him even being part of it, a small tale of a thwarted four day liberty if told from the sailor's point of view, or better, simply a tale of a four day honeymoon for the divorced women. But heaven forbid, there would have been little action. Somehow the ending violence robbed me of my memory of Sissy dancing with her broom while the Andrews Sisters sang.

"Raggedy Man" is not a perfect film. It has a lot of good things going for it, making the unnecessary sideroads seem unlikable with their constant insistence. But as a straightforward drama, it is only just short of wondrous. The cinematography is absolutely breathtaking. Ralf Bode makes this as stunning to look at as other great midwest dramas of the period like "The Stone Boy", "Tender Mercies" or "Country". The performances by the leads - Spacek, Roberts, and young Henry Thomas (in his first role before E.T.) - are all excellent. The main story itself is also believable, and the dramatic arc is well conceived by William D. Wittliff.

But as I mentioned, that's if "Raggedy Man" was a straightforward drama. Unfortunately, it isn't. Building up throughout the film, and culminating in a grandly ill-advised finale, it has aspirations of being some sort of domestic thriller. The reasons for this are beyond my comprehension. Perhaps someone wanted a little unneeded excitement interjected into the film? That's not something I'd generally be opposed to if it weren't so poorly put across. It's a similar mistake made in a film called "The River Rat", which insisted on turning a low key father-daughter drama into a adventure movie for kids.

I have to say, though, that in spite of its sometimes misguided nature, the overwhelmingly well made aspects shine through. The vast majority of "Raggedy Man" is emotionally raw, pure and understated. It holds a convincing humanity and purity of heart. And that means something in a film that's just a bit too schizophrenic for its own good. I recommend it.

Raggedy Man is an unusual mix of themes and styles, but maybe somehow that helps the film to work. The film has quite a lot going for it. The acting, casting, locations, and strong nostalgia are all there. And there is even a surprise twist ending that we see in so many thrillers today. Maybe the ending was a bit out of place. This just is a tough film to really put your finger on, but it basically works.

Sissy Spacek, who is as terrific as ever, plays a divorced woman working as a telephone operator in a small Texas town, and trying to raise two rambunctious little boys between phone call transfers. She desperately wants out of this job and the little town, but her boss keeps telling her she's "frozen" because a war is going on. The majority of the film does take place in 1944. Apparently changing jobs was not possible back then if you were doing civil servant type things while a war was going on. Who knows? But Spacek is stuck there in her house, and very lonely and unhappy. That is until one rainy night, a polite sailor comes to the door hoping to use her public phone. The sailor, played by a somewhat subdued Eric Roberts, learns on the phone that his girlfriend has just dumped him. With nowhere to stay before he ships out in four days, Roberts is taken in by Spacek. The two quickly discover they have feelings for one another, and this does not sit well with the gossipy small town.

Further complicating matters are a couple of local louts who have the hots for Spacek and get very jealous of the sailor. Also hanging around and peeping in windows is the "raggedy man" himself. Who is this mysterious deformed man who also seems to be taking an interest in Spacek and her boys? Well, the final twist pretty much answers that question. And this revelation is a bit difficult to swallow. The film ends somewhat violently, as the louts are dealt with. And things generally seem to be upbeat as the credits roll.

The film has some wonderful selling points. The acting is top-drawer by all involved. The casting choices were absolutely perfect. Especially in support. Tracey Walter and William Sanderson were born to play parts like the two louts. They are very recognizable character actors. If you don't immediately recognize Sanderson, just think, "I'm Larry, this is my brother Darryl, and this is my other brother Darryl." Yes, he was Larry on Newhart. Look for little Henry Thomas who did this film just before E.T.. Bill Thurman of Last Picture Show fame has a bit part as the Sheriff. The town in this film looks a lot like Anarene in that film. If you were alive and recall the way things were on the home front during WWII, then this film will certainly take you back there mentally. The film is ultimately a strange cross between Summer of '42, To Kill a Mockingbird, and.... God knows what else. But somehow it all seems to work. The great cast can probably be thanked for that as much as anything. 7 of 10 stars.

The Hound.

Sissy Spacek followed up her Oscar-winning performance in "Coal Miner's Daughter" with this similarly affecting work in this small-scale film. It's set in a small Texas town called Gregory in 1944. While the Second World War is going on, Nita (Spacek) is working hard to raise two young boys by herself. A divorced woman, Nita has a job as a telephone operator, but yearns for something more. A potential romance with nice-guy sailor Teddy (Eric Roberts), who currently is on a few days leave, takes things out of the ordinary for her. But the ultra-creepy redneck brothers Calvin and Arnold (top character actors William Sanderson ('Deadwood') and Tracey Walter ("Repo Man")) are determined to have their way with her, and since Teddy is not going to be around for long...

"Raggedy Man" is an utterly absorbing, if not great, slice of rural American life circa the 1940s. Debuting director Jack Fisk (Spacek's real-life husband) gives the proceedings some real heart and sensitivity as well as an authentic look. (Fisk is normally an art director and production designer for the movies.) Admittedly, the finale does get melodramatic and a little ugly, but overall the film does have some charm going for it. The characters hold your attention - protagonists and antagonists alike. There is some humour as well as drama, and a lovely Jerry Goldsmith soundtrack to add to the basic effectiveness of the presentation.

Sissy is the glue to hold all of this together, as she plays a strong and independent-minded woman with the guts to stand up to her cranky boss (who's played by the always amusing R.G. Armstrong, another top character actor). Roberts is extremely likeable, delivering one of his best performances. It really is too bad he never became a true A-list star. Henry Thomas of "E.T." fame and Carey Hollis Jr. make their film debuts as Nita's two boys. At first, the film would seem to be a real waste of writer / filmmaker / actor Sam Shepard (who plays mysterious, scar-faced character Bailey), but the part is paid off in the final portion of the picture. Adding flavour to the supporting cast are such familiar faces as Bill Thurman ("The Last Picture Show") as the Sheriff, Jessie Lee Fulton ("Don't Look in the Basement") as Miss Pud, and James N. Harrell ("The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2") as the ticket taker.

Overall, "Raggedy Man" is well worth seeing for any fan of the various cast members.

Seven out of 10.

I just caught this film again on a cable channel and remembered how much I like it. Most people will consider this a "small" film because it doesn't have a lot of action, but there are some suspenseful moments - especially near the end. During World War II, Sissy Spacek plays a small-town phone operator raising her two sons on her own. In fact, the switchboard is in the home where they live. Many of the townspeople have no phone of their own and come to Sissy's home to make calls and sometimes to receive that dreaded call informing them that their husband/son, etc. has been wounded, killed or is missing in action. Oft-seen character actor R.G. Armstrong turns in his usual strong performance as Sissy's manipulative boss. Sissy's philandering former husband is played well by Sam Shepard in a small but pivotal role. Playing their usual (but this time creepy!) Southern "good ol' boys" are Tracey Walter (seen recently as the provider of "insider" evidence in ERIN BROCKOVICH) and William Sanderson (perhaps best known as Larry with his brother Darryl and his other brother Darryl on T.V.'s NEWHEART or for his role in BLADERUNNER). They make great troublemakers in this film. Henry Thomas plays Sissy's older son and reveals the strength of character and sensitivity that he will later show as Elliot in E.T. But the leads, Sissy and Eric Roberts, are my favorites. They are terrific together but also great when apart onscreen. Sissy has a fun moment alone singing and dancing as "Rum & Coca-Cola" plays on the radio while she is housecleaning. She's also good when she tries and finally succeeds at standing up to her boss. And she's definitely believable as the boys' "Mom". Eric, as a young sailor on a short leave, has a great early scene talking on the telephone and is absolutely wonderful in his scenes with the two boys. I love it when he tries to make the boys feel better as he leaves to go back to his ship - he names his two shoes after them so that they will always be with him, calling out their names with each step as he walks off down the street. And then there are the scenes with Sissy and Eric together - tender, sweet and romantic. If you have forgotten like I had, this film will remind you what a beautiful young man Eric was, before the ravages of time and how ever many broken noses he has had, changed him into the more rugged but still handsome man he is today. A few more films (STAR 80, RUNAWAY TRAIN, to name but two) have also shown us what a fine actor he is, but unfortunately, most A-list directors and producers tend to ignore him so that he has become a B-movie regular. I saw him on Broadway about 10 years ago as the lead in BURN THIS, and he was amazing. Come on, somebody, cast him in a really good role in a really good film! He deserves the role and movie-goers deserve to see him at his best. In the meantime, we can enjoy this film.