Review: 'Harry Dean Stanton: Hollywood’s Zen Rebel'

Harry Dean Stanton was a mass of contradictions. He was the quintessential character actor who saw himself as a leading man. He was an unshakable atheist who sometimes identified himself as a Buddhist. He was a loner who often found himself at the center of hard carousing. He was the bitter product of a mother who abandoned him but would not acknowledge a man who claimed to be his son. 

366 Days at the Drive-In: Day 344

The Date: September 8

The Movie: Repo Man (1984)

What Is It?: Glue-sniffing cult classic from director Alex Cox and producer Mike Nesmith in which Harry Dean Stanton mentors punk Emilio Estevez in the ways of repossessing cars. They do some drugs, tussle with a few aliens, and eat cans of “food” to a soundtrack of Iggy Pop, Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Suicidal Tendencies, and other snappy favorites.

Why Today?: On this day in 1984, the film premiers at the Venice Film Festival.