(1985)
directed by Peter Masterson
“The Trip To Bountiful” is a gentle, contemplative gem of a movie. It tells the story of Mrs. Watts’ return to her childhood home and the memories and regrets that the journey invokes.
Geraldine Page stars as Carrie Watts, an elderly woman who lives in a small Houston apartment with her son, Ludie, and her daughter-in-law, Jessie May. Unfortunately, everyone is getting on each other’s nerves. Jessie May doesn’t like Mrs. Watts singing old fashioned hymns around the apartment. She does, however, appreciate the extra cash that Mrs. Watts’ pension check provides. The highlight of Jessie May’s life is getting out of the house for a Coke.
As Mrs. Watts, Geraldine Page is no sweet little old lady. She is a strong, purposeful woman. She also happens to be kind and attentive to others. It’s a wonderful role and Miss Page’s performance is simply magnificent. Mrs. Watts is a country girl and she longs to get away from the joyless suburbs. She wants to pay one last visit to Bountiful, the small town on the Texas coast where she was born. “The Trip to Bountiful” was written by Horton Foote, who based it on his stage play. This is Foote’s second film set in small-town Texas. “Tender Mercies,” a wonderful movie starring Robert Duvall as an alcoholic country singer, was also written by Foote.
A return to Bountiful seems almost impossible. Nobody is even certain that the town still exists. There’s also the problem of paying for the trip. Times are difficult for Ludie and Jessie Mae, who are childless and approaching middle age. One afternoon, however, while Ludie is at work and while Jessie Mae is out for a Coke, Carrie Watts manages to make her getaway. Wearing a somewhat dilapidated hat and her best dress, she takes off by bus for Bountiful. She travels light, carrying only an overnight bag.
The middle section of the movie is the emotional heart of the movie. Mrs. Watts meets another traveler on the bus, a young woman named Thelma. They sit next to each other during the long trip and exchange confidences. Rebecca De Mornay makes Thelma so appealing, so interesting, and so sincere that the relationship between the two women becomes the main focus of the movie. Miss De Mornay more than holds her own with one of the great actresses of our time.
“The Trip to Bountiful” is exquisite in the way it captures all the details of small towns at that time. The bus station, with its clerk drowsing under a lonely light bulb, looks just right. The interstate bus that takes Mrs. Watts to her destination is the perfect reminder of what buses were like in the 1950‘s. We feel Mrs. Watts’ delight as she leans out the window and watches the countryside fly by.
When the sheriff arrives, looking for a runaway old lady, it’s heart-warming the way he and the ticket agent size up the situation and let Mrs. Watts have a last look at her childhood home. The emotional impact is simply overwhelming when Mrs. Watts finally sees her father’s land and the desolate remains of her family’s home. Geraldine Page won the Best Actress Oscar for her extraordinary portrayal of Carrie Watts.