Jarmusch. He is an auteur with five (5) films in the top 500, a film as sublime as Ghost Dog as his 9th best, and certainly a distinct style. I’ll get to it more below in the style section but he’s one of the few auteurs who is here, first and foremost, because of his structural formal mastery. He is a supreme editor (long ellipsis or dissolves) and can make beautiful films (Dead Man, The Limits of Control) but it’s the repetition, structure, numbering and rhythm here that make up the essence of the case for Jarmusch.
Best film: Dead Man
- Hypnotic masterpiece – Jarmusch’s greatest achievement
- Goes back to black and white photography after two consecutive color films- he’s 3/3 even through 6 films at the time of Dead Man
- This is his first narrative structure since Permanent Vacation that isn’t broken into distinct sections by region—in Stranger Than Paradise it’s NJ/Cleveland/Florida, then Down by Law it’s New Orleans/prison/escape and of course the 5 separate cities in Night on Earth
- Easily his most beautiful film visually from a photographic standpoint at this point in his career- only The Limits of Control (2009) would rival it (though Down by Law has some great sequences).
- The final film performance by Robert Mitchum (couple of great funny scenes)
- Name “William Blake”- and the poetry is referenced throughout – again Ebert called Jarmusch a poet—Paterson would be about an everyman poet
- Robby Muller is the DP again- stunning work- this is at the level or near of Kings of the Road which is Wenders’ most beautiful film
- Neil Young’s achievement here with the music is incalculable—again we have a nod at Wim Wenders (clearly an influence on Jarmusch) with the Ry Cooder score for Paris, Texas– minimal, haunting work by Young
- journey film— but literal, existential, spiritually—Apocalypse Now, Pierrot le Fou from Godard
- Again with Jarmusch the editing is crucial—he fades to black between each scene like he does with Stranger Than Paradise. It lulls you in—you pair it with the evocative photography and the repetitious and radiant score—you feel the dream state Jarmusch is going for in tone. Depp is constantly fading in and out of consciousness (whether he’s sleeping or passes out, etc). We’ve taken off by the end of the film
- Definitely feeds like a nod to Buster Keaton with Depp’s deadpan— Depp’s performance here is pivotal as well- he underplays it perfectly- he lets all the loud noises come from around him – whether it’s “Nobody”, Mitchum, bickering headhunters-
- one of Depp’s greatest achievements here- underplaying deadpan comedic brilliance
- the deadpan humor from Jarmusch—but not winking disparagement
- A fish out of water comedy- Depp’s Blake is an easterner who is in the west- – the fantastic short film train opening. Very elliptical- he sleeps and wakes up seeing the passengers and window landscape scenery get more and more wild/western. Jarmusch cuts back and forth to the train itself (exterior) – this editing is Ozu- the trains- Ozu—the first word is 6 minutes in by Crispin Glover
- begins by intertwining the exterior of the trains (hello Ozu) with shot below and fading to black each time
- 6 minute silent opening Blake’s surroundings change
- Cleveland again- Blake’s character’s home town
- I think Jarmusch shows the run-down street (Jarmusch is a modern day urban filmmaker up until now) with art on the wall (equivalent to his beloved graffiti), trash, oral in the alley, to make a statement on the universality (or timelessness) of it all
- the historical equivalent of Jarmusch’s graffiti? trash art as high art
- The tobacco repetition in the text—feels like the Coen brothers
- There are many indications (both text and subtext) that he’s dead—shot in the heart, Nobody sees him as a skeleton
- Again that elliptic editing huge
- Sea of white trees photography—immaculate — another section later of the forest
- jaw-dropper art on the wall shot
- A simple narrative propulsion and a series of unfortunate events
- Guys chasing him at one point named “Lee” and “Marvin”—gorgeous shot of one of them dead surrounded by the campfire
- The fawn photograph— the Native Americans are the heroes, their spiritual village at the end (with graffiti) and they send him on his journey. His friend “Nobody”—the white people are shown shooting at buffalos
- Depp’s Blake becomes a western legend like Shane—shot and rides off—badass ending with the light coming though and the dissolve edit
total archiveable films: 12
top 100 films: 0
top 500 films: 5 (Dead Man, Broken Flowers, Stranger Than Paradise, Down by Law, Mystery Train)
top 100 films of the decade: 7 (Dead Man, Broken Flowers, Stranger Than Paradise, Down by Law, Mystery Train, Paterson, Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai)
most overrated: Nothing- he has three films in the TSPDT top 1000 (Dead Man, Down By Law, Stranger Than Paradise) and all are underrated or in the right spot.
most underrated: The Limits of Control– panned! A 41 on Metacritic
- Jarmusch’s formal rigor stretched to the extremes—repetition, tone and visuals over narrative—Jarmusch has never made a more beautiful film
- It’s demanding and I think Jarmusch misses an opportunity by making it 112 minutes—at 92 and with a superior score (like one from Dead Man from Neil Young or Ghost Dog from RZA) I think this is a masterpiece
- like Point Blank that inspired it– avant-garde shots and mirror work here
- Incredible Spanish canvas shot by WKW long-time photographer and collaborator Christopher Doyle
- As the title says a “Point Blank” production—Jarmusch’s company—this is very much influenced by the 1967 John Boorman masterpiece – a stoic man on a mission—a “B-film narrative” on top of an art-house backdrop (this could be a Antonioni masterwork, Resnais
- foreground/background focus– low-angle and architecture as character
- Soft-focus repetition—really quite wonderful.
- Other formal repetition – Café “Two espressos, in two separate cups”, cafes, red colors, exchanging match boxes, lying in bed contemplating, yoga (in a tailored suit) vignettes with colorful outside characters (from Hurt to Swinton to the beautiful naked gal to Gael Garcia Bernal to Murray at the end)
- Architecture as character through low-angle shots— others with Isaach De Bankolé lost in the backdrop
- this is Antonioni– think of the scenes of Jeanne Moreau lost in La Notte swallowed up by the modern architecture
- Largely a silent film
- Reoccurring sequences where Isaach De Bankolé goes to the museum to appreciate the art—Jarmusch almost shoots them like two people in love
- Welles Lady from Shanghai in the text—Swinton’s character saying “the best films are dreams you’re never sure you’ve really had” — references in the test to Tarkovsky’s Stalker and Kaurismäki
- Staircase shots with that like ivory color and blood red
- Repetition of phrases – “you don’t speak Spanish, right?”
- Great shots of the windmills in the background on the train
- When he switches towns we get a new color pattern—lots of just walking—escalators, glorious landscapes
- We’re really watching an assassin film with the drama taken out—the routine between jobs and in the preparation. If it weren’t for the formal construction and breathtaking visuals I’d agree this sounds—um— not enticing
- Reoccurring overhead shot of the espressos—between that and the stranger meeting vignettes this is surely a companion piece of Coffee and Cigarettes—the assassin plot definitely makes it a cousin to Ghost Dog (De Bankolé in it as well and the quiet lead)
- Shots walking down the street with graffiti is in just about all of Jarmusch’s films
- Miraculously detailed final set piece location—white bed sheets draped (De Bankolé then goes to the museum and sees artwork with the bed sheet
- formal repetition- Jarmusch’s trademark– great symmetry here as well with the image
- It’s so silent it’s almost jarring when Murray shows up with all the dialogue near the end.
- When the job is over De Bankolé leaves and the next cut makes it look like we’re going back to the normal world—ties to the dream/sleep quality of both this and
- Production designer here Eugenio Caballero did Pan’s Labyrinth and Roma
- Rosenbaum – spot on here— “the urban and rural landscapes here do more for my imagination than the various American suburban stretches of Jarmusch’s previous feature.”
gem I want to spotlight: Stranger Than Paradise
- A stunning achievement and the announcement of Jim Jarmusch as a major force in world cinema—deadpan comedy, formal master
- so few films are ambitious in their structure- and I don’t mean complicated
- the film is a series of single take long duration shots, elliptically edited with few seconds of blank black screen— set in three cities (NYC (really NJ), Cleveland, Florida) with title cards
- The symmetry—repetition– makes it so hypnotic
- hilarious use of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You”
- a fish out of water comedy with language barriers (Hungarian here)—Jarmusch would do this over and over again along with the three part rigorous formal narrative structure
- b/w 35mm like much of his work
- bookend airport opening and closing
- Episodic but interconnected- Jarmusch, the formal master, repeats the same set up (five conversations between strangers in taxis at night). This is, of course, is linked to his previous work which all employ a three-part story structure (aside from Permanent Vacation) along with Murray chasing down the separate ladies in Broken Flowers, the days of the week in Paterson, and the multiple encounters over stimulants in Coffee and Cigarettes
- “Daring in its conception but made with a watchmaker’s care”- Washington Post- love this
- John Lurie is not only the lead but does the music (like he does for Permanent Vacation, Down by Law and Mystery Train)
- The washed out color is brilliant- it sets the tone, keeps consistency (repetition is incredibly important when understanding Jarmusch) even when going from freezing Cleveland to Florida (that trip from NYC to Florida reminds me of Midnight Cowboy of course)
- Ironic music (Hawkins), titles (“new world”)
- The editing is a crucial choice/structure- huge—sets the film up as a series of vignettes
- Names of the horses in the race- “Passing Fancy” and “Tokyo Story” (“yeah that’s a good one” from Lurie in the film)- haha from Ozu. Static camera- from Ozu. The vacuuming has to be from Akerman.
- The vibe the film creates- we’re watching them watch tv, play solitaire, sleep, drive, go to the movies— it’s hypnotic with the way the film is edited with the ellipsis — it’s not realism
- NJ for the first 30 mins, Cleveland, Florida- it’s split evenly of course. Ends with “what the hell are you gonna do in Budapest?” irony — you go someplace new and everything looks the same
- Graffiti in the mise-en-scene, small apartment, small house, fleabag motel in Florida—stark, minimal, garbage art – Gilliam, Wenders
- Some of the jokes are great. “Did she just call you ‘Bela’ outside?
stylistic innovations/traits: Jarmusch is one of cinema’s most dedicated formalists. His work involves controlled repetition, slight variations on that repetition, usually, inside of a rigid set structure. Much of his early work is easily numerically organized (3— Down by Law, Stranger Than Paradise, Mystery Train, 5- Night on Earth, Broken Flowers, 7- Days in Paterson). A Jarmuschian vibe is created by a measured rhythm in the scene (pauses and carries everything a beat long)—– while the skeleton of the film is formally so sound and distinct. Visual poetry—dilapidated and decrepit—a boarded up movie house, bars, graffiti of course in the mise-en-scene– another decaying hotel—but it’s art—pool halls, walking down the street. The narratives most often involve a fish out of water with language as a barrier. They’re often essentially plotless films, requiring patience and attention to detail to pick up his formal cues while his laid-back editing (heavy dissolves or longer elliptical transitions) works on you. Hipster cool. From Camby NYT “the excitement (of Down by Law) comes from the realization that we are seeing a true film maker at work, using film to create a narrative that couldn’t exist on the stage or the printed page of a novel”. He’s largely an urban filmmaker– garbage art- Wenders an influence. He told each scene a beat long- again I believe this is Akerman and Ozu’s influence. The editing a major achievement—it fades to black in many of his scenes.
top 10
- Dead Man
- Stranger Than Paradise
- Paterson
- The Limits of Control
- Broken Flowers
- Down By Law
- Mystery Train
- Only Lovers Left Alive
- Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai
- Night on Earth
By year and grades
| 1980- Permanent Vacation | R |
| 1984- Stranger Than Paradise | MS/MP |
| 1986- Down By Law | MS |
| 1989- Mystery Train | MS |
| 1991- Night on Earth | HR |
| 1995- Dead Man | MP |
| 1999- Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai | HR |
| 2003- Coffee and Cigarettes | R |
| 2005- Broken Flowers | MS |
| 2009- The Limits of Control | MS |
| 2013- Only Lovers Left Alive | HR |
| 2016- Paterson | MS |
*MP is Masterpiece- top 1-3 quality of the year film
MS is Must-see- top 5-6 quality of the year film
HR is Highly Recommend- top 10 quality of the year film
R is Recommend- outside the top 10 of the year quality film but still in the archives
@ Drake: Did you catch his latest- Father Mother Sister Brother? How is it?
@AP- not yet- look forward to it though
Study Summary: Jim Jarmusch
“I’d rather make a movie about a guy walking his dog than about the emperor of China.”
– Jim Jarmusch (from 1989 interview)
Jim Jarmusch is a fascinating filmmaker due to his combination of his stylistic approach, subject matter, and culture blending
Jarmusch formal approach prioritizes structure. Stranger Than Paradise (1984) which was not his debut feature film (though it was his 2nd film) but was his breakout film. In that film the 90 minutes is evenly broken down into 3 almost exactly 30 minutes segments in 3 different locations. Down by Law (1986) has a similar approach and Mystery Train (1989) uses one location, which is Memphis, with 3 storylines with some overlap. Broken Flowers (2005) has the lead character visits 5 women he had past relationships with as one of them might have a son that he did not know about for 18 years. Limits of Control (2009) has a laconic professional killer who goes through a routine throughout the film. The final film covered in the Study, Paterson, is structured around a week with repeated shots at the beginning of each day and shows the lead character going about the same activities each day
As the above quote notes, Jarmusch is fascinated by the mundane. His films capture little details in people’s daily routines; characters making small talk, walking their dog, smoking a cigarette, watching TV, etc. Jarmusch has cited Yasujirō Ozu as a major influence. Jarmusch, being a cinephile himself, frequently references other films in his own films. His work also contains references to literature, artwork, and music. Jarmusch has a band named “SQÜRL” which consists of Jim Jarmusch and Carter Logan. In 2009 they worked with the producer/engineer Shane Stoneback and recorded some of the music for The Limits of Control (2009) and SQÜRL does most of the soundtrack for Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
Jarmusch blends cultures together in a fascinating way. Several of his films have characters who do not speak the same language and have to find a way to communicate. Stranger Than Paradise has a Hungarian teenager visiting her cousin who is also Hungarian but has lived in the United States for most of his life. He is a little insecure about his status as “American” when his buddy is surprised to learn that he was not born in the United States. Ghost Dog blends Japanese samurai philosophy with elements of hip hop culture including east coast rap music and places it into a plot revolving around Italian mob movie characters. Dead Man a Native American character function as a sort of guide for the main character played by Johnny Depp during their strange journey. Nobody explains various Native American concepts and phrases to Blake throughout the film
Of all the director Studies I have done now, only the Coen Brothers seem as fascinated by location. He uses tracking shots in several of his films in a way that makes you feel like you are there with the character, he does this with a couple of locations in Stranger Than Paradise and with New Orleans in Down by Law, Memphis in Mystery Train, Madrid, Spain in Limits of Control and several other cities in Night on Earth
Dead Man (1995) is his single best film in my opinion as it is visually stunning with phenomenal performances, immaculate editing with the fade to black cuts during the opening train sequence, hilarious at times with Gary Farmer’s character “nobody” providing comic relief, and the bleak atmosphere maintained throughout the film. I love the decision to use monochrome
The filmography is quite consistently strong, only Night on Earth was a simple R for me, not that a simple R is an insult
I can see each of the following films increasing by half a letter grade or even a full grade with further viewings:
Down by Law (1986)
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
Limits of Control (2009)
Broken Flowers (2005)
Final Ranking and Grades:
# 1 Dead Man (1995) – MP
# 2 Stranger Than Paradise (1984) – MP
# 3 Paterson (2016) – MP/MS
# 4 Mystery Train (1989) – MS
# 5 Ghost Dog (1999) – MS
# 6 Down by Law (1986) – MS/HR
# 7 Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) – MS/HR
# 8 Limits of Control (2009) – HR
# 9 Broken Flowers (2005) – HR
# 10 Night on Earth (1991) – R
@James Trapp- congrats on the study- keep up the good work!
@James Trapp- “I’d rather make a movie about a guy walking his dog than about the emperor of China.”
Is this a dig at Bernardo Bertolucci and The Last Emperor?
@Drake – thanks, I loved this Study
@Malith – I don’t think so, it’s from an interview I found. I think he just meant that he is more interested in exploring the mundane small things in life rather than more grand subject matter. Instead of emperor of China he probably could have just as easily said the King of France
@James Trapp- I still have only seen it once- but it is too bad “The Dead Don’t Die” isn’t better.
Also- I forgot to mention it specifically on your comments for Mystery Train (though I do on the Mystery Train page) – but some of his work splitting up and connecting narratives splices are Tarantino before Tarantino
@Drake – yeah the reviews stopped me from watching The Dead Don’t Die despite the incredible cast. Good call, Tarantino never crossed my mind. Jarmusch has an upcoming film “Father, Mother, Sister, Brother” set for 2025 release
That one just premiered at Venice – seems like a return to form for him!
@Ŕueben – that is exciting, very strong reviews thus far. What a cast…Cate Blanchett, Vicky Krieps, Adam Driver, Tom Waits, and Charlotte Rampling, amongst others
@James Trapp- “I’d rather make a movie about a guy walking his dog than about the emperor of China.”
This is a direct dig at Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor. Petty from Jarmusch.
@Malith – The quote was from around the time The Last Emperor (1987) was released so it is definitely a reference to it but I do not think it was meant as an insult. It was just a statement about the type of subject matter that Jarmusch finds interesting. A guy walking a dog is extremely mundane and basically the polar opposite to the grand subject matter of a Chinese Emperor. Plus, I read a number of Jarmusch interviews, he is a laid back guy, cool. Not really someone who randomly insults other filmmakers
Paterson (2016)
Notes:
Adam Driver as Paterson
Golshifteh Farahani as Laura
Starts with overhead shot of Adam Driver as Paterson and Golshifteh Farahani as Laura lying in bed
3:01 English Bulldog
3:45 Paterson leaves middle class home
4:24 Paterson internal dialogue as he thinks of poetry
7 min Paterson is bus driver in Paterson, NJ
7:30 two young teens on the bus talking about Hurricane Carter the boxer
8:35 dissolves between Paterson and water falls with poetry about Ohio Blue Tip Matches
13:33 neon lit exterior of bar during walking dog
14:30 Paterson goes to bar
23:20 dissolve of Paterson’s face driving the bus, interlinking his face with the city
34:04 “you should be an actor” “I am an actor” humorous scene
37:28 dissolve used during bus driving scene
42:45 method man cameo
46:25 overhead shot of Paterson and Laura sleeping in bed
50:40 two college aged kids debate modern day anarchists, very Godard like with the young adults interested in discussing politics
52:46 camera held on Paterson eating a cupcake during a break
53:35 frame in frame with shot of Laura in front of mirror; the wallpaper in the frame is same design pattern that was on the cupcake
55:22 Paterson sits with young girl waiting for her mom to pick her up
56:08 young girl shows Patterson her secret poem journal which has a pink and blue exterior matching her clothes
1:01:08 conversation over dinner
1:03:00 Paterson talking with Doc, the friendly owner of the bar who is also an avid chess player
1:04:50 humorous scene with Doc’s wife calling him out for taking money from the piggy bank
1:09:21 Laura making cupcakes while talking with Paterson in morning
1:10:00 close up on Paterson’s hands while he’s writing poetry
1:18:07 Laura playing guitar, which is painted in similar pattern as cupcakes and wall paper, and singing country music
1:28:20 cupcakes filling the frame
1:29:32 wide angle shot of Paterson Falls
1:29:52 beautiful dissolve
1:32:36 movie posters for Island of Lost Souls and Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, Paterson and Laura go into movie
1:45:07 a still dejected looking Paterson meets Japanese man at the falls who talks poetry with him
Thoughts:
“I’d rather make a movie about a guy walking his dog than about the emperor of China.”
– Jim Jarmusch (from 1989 interview)
This is a nearly perfect film and so quintessential Jarmusch. Jarmusch has this amazing ability to create films where you are waiting for something to happen with the plot, nothing really does, and yet by the end of the film you are strangely satisfied with the entire experience. He captures little moments that are rarely given much thought in most films
Another highly structured film, repetition in the scheduled life of Adam Driver’s character named Paterson which in addition to being the film’s title is also the setting which is Paterson, NJ. The film captures the daily routine of Paterson; a man who drives a bus, writes poetry in his free moments, walks his dog, gets a beer at a local bar, and spends time with his wife. His poetry captures the little moments of life, I love the one about Ohio Blue Tip Matches
Adam Driver got his bus driving license by attending a bus driving school course in Queens, NY to prepare for the role. Driver is a versatile actor, but he is especially perfect here due to his combination natural likability and ability to play introspective characters. His character in this film has elements of an everyman who can make small talk but is probably an introvert by nature
Jarmusch has increasingly used dissolves over his last several films, I like the one around the 23 min mark with Driver’s face while his character is driving the bus and interlinking his face with the city he is driving in. There are other similar uses throughout the film
Like other Jarmusch films, the setting is essential, here the film’s title is a reference to the city it is set in which is Paterson, NJ. There are multiple scenes at the Paterson Falls which I recognized but could not put my finger on why until it hit me that it is used to film a couple of scenes in the first season of The Sopranos. Throughout the film there are references to famous people from Paterson
Some great side characters like Barry Shabaka Henley as the friendly neighborhood bartender and William Jackson Harper as a hopeless romantic. And of course, Golshifteh Farahani’s character who is not really a side character as she plays Paterson’s wife; she is a bit zany with a variety of interests from baking cupcakes to becoming a country music star
Verdict: MP/MS
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
Notes:
Tilda Swinton as Eve
Tom Hiddleston as Adam
Mia Wasikowska as Ava
Anton Yelchin as Ian
Jeffrey Wright as Dr. Watson
Starts with overhead shot with record spinning and psychedelic music followed by a cut to a shot with the camera rotating 360 degrees over Tilda Swinton’s character who is named Eve and then cut to Tom Hiddleston’s character who is named Adam
2:40 dissolve from Vinyl record spinning to camera moving 360 degrees and back
7:35 overhead shot with triangle frame in frame
8 min amusing scene with Adam and Ian, a young music fan played by the late Anton Yelchin, who Adam hires to get vintage guitars and other as well as a custom-made wooden bullet with a brass casing
10:40 Adam and Ian standing in dimly lit room as Ian gets ready to leave
18:36 Jeffrey Wright plays a doctor who gives the Vampires blood so they don’t have to go looking for human prey
21:57 Eve walking in slow motion through street alleys
22:46 parallel editing as Eve, Adam, and Christopher Marlow (John Hurt) drink blood out of small wine glasses in 3 separate locations, all set to psychedelic score
25:33 frame in frame with Eve appearing on TV monitor
28:28 dissolves between characters with overhead shots
29:44 frame in frame from Adam’s POV
34:58 Adam is essentially revealed as a recluse rock star type who is annoyed when he discovers young rock and roll fans have been hanging around his apartment
38:54 camera moves in hands of airplane passenger after he accidentally cuts himself, the camera then captures the entranced face of Eve
41:02 Eve arrives in Detroit outside Adam’s house and the two reunite
43 min Adam and Eve talk about problems of the world
45:55 camera rising from overhead shot of naked Adam and Eve lying on couch
48:25 car ride with trippy music
58:52 Eve confronts Adam about gun in his place
1:02:22 overhead shot of Adam and Eve dancing to “Trapped by a Thing Called Love”
1:06:54 Mia Wasikowska as Ava who is Eve’s sister
1:08:46 Adam’s insults about LA are meta
1:15:36 neon lighting during concert scene
1:19:46 shallow focus close up on Ian’s face
1:21:41 characters in 3 depths of field inside Adam’s home studio
1:25:01 close up on the bottle dropping from Eve’s hand as there are a couple of seconds from the stunned look on Eve’s face and cut to Ian lying dead after Ava drank his blood killing him
1:26:48 Ava calls Adam and Eve condescending snobs before storming out, hilarious
1:31:51 green/blue tint during Ian’s body dumped in acid outside an abandoned factory
1:34:03 pan across to Adam and Eve in airplane dissolves to them in a cab and then tracking shot along the city at night
1:38:46 overhead shot with triangle frame, this shot occurred earlier only before it was just Eve and now it is Adam and Eve
1:40:54 arc shaped doorway is straight out of Nosferatu (1922)
1:47:00 two-shot of desperate couple asking each other “what are we going to do” at same time
1:50:13 shallow focus with Adam and Eve inside small show venue
Thoughts:
Jarmusch showing off his incredible creativity yet again; this movie features vampires in a long distance relationship who communicate using iPhone Facetime until they meet up in person. It might even sound gimmicky to someone who does not know Jarmusch well
What is funny is that this could work without the vampire angle, it actually has little relevance to the narrative which is really a dark comedy/mood piece. It is similar to how many of the best supernatural horror films work without the supernatural horror element such as Rosemary’s Baby. Rather than use the vampire angle to create horror the film uses it to explore human relationships, in particular long term relationships between people but also concepts such as nostalgia. Adam, portrayed by Tom Hiddleston, is a moody recluse who seems to believe the best days are long gone while Eve, portrayed by Tilda Swinton, is more upbeat and willing to look to the future
The consistent use of overhead shots throughout the film is a formal strength. There are a number of shots repeated throughout the film and in the opening with parallel editing in the overhead shots of Adam and Eve with camera moving 360 degrees. The dissolves are one of the visual highlights, they are perfect in the early moments of the film
Jarmusch uses parallel editing when the characters drink blood together almost in a sort of ritualistic fashion, each of the three characters are shown with same camera angle during this section, very impressively shot
The dim lighting present throughout much of the film and in particular with scenes featuring Adam is effective in establishing his reclusive nature
SQÜRL is a band consisting of Jim Jarmusch and Carter Logan. In 2009 they worked with the producer/engineer Shane Stoneback and recorded some of the music Jarmusch featured in The Limits of Control. SQÜRL does much of the soundtrack here and it is magnificent; I especially love the psychedelic music used in the opening scene with the rotating overhead shots
I laughed at Adam referring to Los Angeles as “zombie central”. I cannot help but think this is a subtle jab at Hollywood as “zombie” is used as an insult in the film
Perhaps my favorite scene involves Adam and Eve dancing to “Trapped by a Thing Called Love”. This scene is just brilliant, and it is scenes like this that transcends the film beyond genre. Great song as well, so many of the songs I listen to come from me first hearing them in movies
The performances are excellent all the way around, especially the leads, Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston. It is always bittersweet seeing Anton Yelchin (he tragically died young in real life in a freak car accident) and he is excellent as a young fan of Adam’s music
Verdict: MS/HR
@James Trapp- We need early to mid 2010 Tom Hiddlestone back. He was in so many great films in main roles around that time working with quality directors.
@Malith- great call- sneaky good streak
@Drake- I feel like Tom has kind of gone down the same career path as Paul Bettany. I’m a big admirer of both in general and certainly the MCU has given both of them a lot of popularity(Hiddlestone more than Bettany) enough for them to have their own MCU Television Series(Even if this doesn’t equate to a film lead). But one would have expected more if you asked the question for Hiddlestone in 2016 and Bettany in 2004(coming off Dogville, Master and Commander). Very soft spoken, fabulous to watch actors. I think the MCU kind of halted Hiddlestone’s career unlike Bettany who was floundering for a while before getting cast as Vision.
Bettany’s performance in Here is kind of wild too. He goes through a lot of stages here as an actor. And more or less steals the film from Hanks. But even if they haven’t worked with auteurs for a while (Zemeckis is past his prime really in Here) they can still remind us of their talents in OK films elevated just by their performance in things like Uncle Frank and The Life of Chucky once in a while.
The Limits of Control (2009)
Notes:
Cast:
Isaach de Bankolé as Lone Man
Bill Murray as American
Tilda Swinton as Blonde
Gael García Bernal as Mexican
Hiam Abbass as Driver
Paz de la Huerta as Nude
Starts in an airport with Isaach de Bankolé as Lone Man
4:14 low rumbling noise in background as Lone Man sits down across from two well-dressed men
4:30 Lone Man is prepped for a murder he is paid to do, although the instructions are cryptic
6:34 red match box
8:26 close up over two expresso cups and red match box as he travels by plane
11:37 stunning low angle shot with Lone Man outside of Torres Blancas, this is gorgeous mixed use concrete building in Madrid, Spain
12:12 frame in frame with multi-color frame inside elevator
13:19 overhead shot of Lone Man lying in bed with frame slowly becoming lighter
15:30 lone man orders two expressos rather than one larger coffee
17:10 overhead shot of Lone Man walking through building
18:52 Lone Man moves through art museum which all white walls have portraits, he becomes fixated on one of them shown using slow zoom in POV
20:07 Lone Man’s shiny blue/green suit
25:10 Lone Man becomes fixated photography of naked woman, again with slow zoom in POV
26:09 close up on Lone Man’s head takes up half the frame
26:37 naked woman lying on Lone Man’s bed holding a gun pointed in his direction, shortly after they sleep in same bed but do not have sex
29:02 slow fade out reveals shot of city to actually be a portrait at the museum
29:54 frame in frame resembling Antonioni or WKW as 2/3 of the frame boxes in character
30:54 cut to vibrant orange/red colored walls and music playing in restaurant
33:30 shaky camera tracking Tilda Swinton
35:12 Swinton’s character references Hitchcock’s Suspicion (1941)
37:03 both characters take out the same matches with different colors
37:17 The Lady from Shanghai (1947) is also referenced by Swinton’s character
39:27 shallow focus medium shot of Lone Man
42:42 high angle shot in train station, symmetry
44:55 Lone Man sits across from woman in train next to large clear window
57:53 medium close ups throughout scene make it difficult to gage the where the characters are in relation to one another
1:05:23 Lone Man in outdoor café near center of frame showing negative space
1:07:04 John Hurt character meets Lone Man at café
1:13:52 Lone Man moving through narrow corridor on train carrying a guitar case
1:15:29 POV from inside train looking out as background changes
1:20:23 another narrow passage
1:23:43 two boxes of matches, one red and one green
1:30:40 frame in frames via mirror reflections
1:34:38 high angle POV shot of man arriving in helicopter surrounded by armed guards
1:38:42 frame in frame as Lone Man places covers over naked woman in bed
1:41:42 skull on table of Bill Murray character
1:42:50 Murray’s character is revealed as the target for Lone Man
The final 15 minutes has the Lone Man return to his home and put away the suits and throw away the box of matches
.
Thoughts:
Jarmusch with a film about a hitman who lives in solitude and is given a mission to complete in the opening, that one sentence description sounds similar to Ghost Dog (1999) but that is where the similarities end. Ghost Dog, despite being quite comical in many ways, still had a gritty sort of realism in terms of its atmosphere and urban location with Ghost Dog (the character) bumping rap music while driving through the streets. This film is surreal with many scenes involving beautiful architecture and various art museums. The main character is simply referred to an “Lone Man”. There is a detached atmosphere, almost like watching a character who is in a dream
This is visually stunning, I could not help but think of Antonioni’s 1960s work, especially Red Desert (1964) with the focus on architecture. The extreme angles, high angle and especially low angle shots, are effective in emphasizing the architecture as character. Amazing low angle the shot of Torres Blancas when the Lone Man first arrives, it occurs somewhere between the 11 and 12 minute mark. These angles make Lone Man seem lost in the architecture at times
The film uses the Torres Blancas, which is a mixed use concrete building located in Madrid, Spain and was designed by Spanish architect Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oiza.
The aforementioned surrealism and detachment gives the film an atmosphere you might expect from a David Lynch film or even some of Terence Malick’s more abstract films. The quietness is eerie at times; it accentuates the dreamlike vibe that is present throughout much of the film. The Lone Man has so few actual lines of dialogue considering that he is on the screen for the entire film
Jarmusch works with WKW’s go to cinematographer Chris Doyle. I love the green and blue heavy color palette, it adds to the detached atmosphere
This film received mixed reviews. I am not too surprised by the polarizing reviews as this is not a very accessible film as there is little in the way of traditional narrative
Repetition with the two expresso cups, box of matches, teal suits or some other variation of green/blue, and other images repeated throughout the film. There are shots of Lone Man and occasionally other characters, walking through hallways, corridors, and other narrow pathways
Like other Jarmusch films there is a great number of scenes featuring characters, here usually the main character travels so you have shots on trains, train stations, airplanes, airports, etc.
Verdict: HR
@James – Watched this a few years ago, but felt it was on its way to a masterpiece than fell off quite hard after the first hour. I so agree with Drake’s notion that with a great soundtrack and 90 minute runtime this lands really strong overall.
@James Trapp – Interesting- I haven’t kept track over the years, but I feel like there haven’t been many times that I’ve had a higher grade for a film than you have
@Drake – It is an impressive film though I would agree with you and @Harry about the length and soundtrack. This was my first viewing so I could see it going up of course, it is pretty rare that additional viewings lower the grade for me with occasion exceptions
Broken Flowers (2005)
Notes:
Cast:
Bill Murray as Don Johnson
Jeffrey Wright as Winston
Julie Delpy
Sharon Stone
Frances Conroy
Jessica Lange
Tilda Swinton
Starts with sequence tracking a pink USPS letter from an outgoing mailbox to a shot of the plane taking off with the letters inside
Great use of song in establishing the tone with “There is an End” I was not familiar with this song or the band before this film but really enjoyed it
6:28 Don played by Bill Murray is shown a pink letter by his girlfriend Sherry who breaks up with him
9:30 Don lying on a couch shortly after his girlfriend breaks up with him due to his lack of interest in starting a family
11:48 Don visits a friend named Winston, played by Jeffrey Wright
13:10 Don reads aloud pink letter he received in the mail that informs him that he is a father with a 19 year old son that he previously did not know about
16:06 wide angle shot with Don’s back to the camera as he sits in the dark of his living room
20:41 Don references Sam Spade, Sherlock Holmes, and another fictional detective
22:19 Don and Winston smoke a joint
25:50 Winston puts together a book of documents for the 5 most likely candidates of women who he had his son with
27:10 “bring pink flowers” is Winston’s advice
30:45 long take on Don sitting on couch with glass of wine in front of him
31:54 Don sitting in middle seat of plane
32:50 teenage girls on bus talking a million words a minute as Don sits with sunglasses on
39:20 Sharon Stone as Laura
42:16 Laura’s daughter is named Lolita
44:03 fade to black edit followed by Don waking up in bed next to Laura
45:46 Lolita dressed like Lolita from Kubrick’s film
49:12 Don visits Dora played by Frances Conroy
52:55 Dora’s husband Ron played by Christopher McDonald
56:41 triangle composition during tense dinner with Dora and Ron
1:02:38 Dr. Carmen Markowski played by Jessica Lange
1:06:06 over the shoulder shot of Carmen from Don’s POV
1:07:51 Carmen claims to be an animal “communicator”
1:09:35 Carmen walks Don to his vehicle
1:15:26 Don standing on side of the street holding pink flowers
1:17:07 Don in trailer park community looking for Penny played by Tilda Swinton
1:20:50 wide angle shot of field after screen goes black upon Don being knocked out
1:23:37 Don’s face is bruised
1:25:14 Don places pink flowers at the gravestone of Michelle Pepe
1:26:50 montage of various scenes earlier in the film
1:28:25 Don back to sleeping on his couch
1:28:54 Don watching cartoons
1:29:31 Don receives another pink letter
1:31:31 Don meets with Winston and shows Winston he has another pink letter
1:32:54 frame in frame of a young man who Don suspects may be his son
The film ends with the same song it opens with
Thoughts:
Jarmusch structures this film after 5 segments consisting of Bill Murray’s Don visiting ex-girlfriends in an effort to find his possible son that he did not even know he had until receiving a surprise letter in the mail. The structure creates a sort of mystery to solve although the real mystery is less which woman has a son with Don and more so about Don himself. He is so reserved, and has an air of mystery surrounding him
I have warmed up to Bill Murray over the years. I used to not really understand why he was so famous in the first place, but I have come to appreciate his dry humor. His deadpan style works perfectly for Jarmusch
I love Murray’s various tracksuits, dressing like a Sopranos character
Jeffrey Wright makes every movie better
The use of pink is well done formally, from the pink letter to the pink flowers to the pink outfits worn the Julie Delpy character, Lolita (hilarious), the Sharon Stone character, the Jessica Lange character, and the typewriter
The over the shoulder shots and POV shots when Murray is driving puts the viewer into his characters perspective making you part of the trip
This was my first viewing
Verdict: HR
@James Trapp- this interests me here- “I have warmed up to Bill Murray over the years. I used to not really understand why he was so famous in the first place, but I have come to appreciate his dry humor.” What Murray have we seen or not seen?
@Drake – Part of this is due to the fact that I did not love Wes Anderson all that much when I was younger, have definitely changed my opinion on that and probably will do a Wes Anderson Study in the near future. I was not all that impressed by Lost in Translation when it first came out, I now have it in my top 100 so massive swing there. In fact, that is probably the single most important reason change. I also liked What About Bob much more than I did when I saw it as a teenager. I think a big part is just my appreciation for the deadpan acting style which has grown over the years
Of the Murray films you have in archives I have seen:
1984- Ghostbusters
1991- What About Bob?
1993- Groundhog Day
1998- Rushmore
2001- The Royal Tenenbaums
2003- Lost in Translation
2005- Broken Flowers
2014- The Grand Budapest Hotel
2021- The French Dispatch
I have not seen:
1982- Tootsie
2020- On the Rocks
2004- The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
2007- The Darjeeling Limited
2009- The Limits of Control – I am going to watch this one tonight continuing Jarmusch Study
2009- Zombieland
2009- Get Low
2012- Moonrise Kingdom
@James Trapp – thanks for sharing- makes sense.
@Drake – yeah, the subtleties were lost on me when I was younger, it came across more as underacting
@James Trapp- All good- I was just asking. For a generation or two he is/was just considered the funniest guy out there
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)
Notes:
Forest Whitaker as “Ghost Dog”
John Tormey as Louie
Cliff Gorman as Sonny
Henry Silva as Ray Vargo
Starts with overhead shot of city score RZA from Wu Tang Clan
3:04 camera floats from rooftop with Pidgeon den to the inside of apartment where Forest Whitaker as “Ghost Dog” is reading a samurai book
3:50 Ghost Dog’s internal thoughts reciting a passage from Hagakure; this is a book which contains the author’s views of the Samurai Code (also known as Bushido)
8:28 Ghost Dog bumps rap music while cruising through the streets
14:07 “you can pay your respects at the funeral like the rest of us” Sonny talking about Frank when Louie says he feels bad about Frank’s impending death
15:30 red dot followed by Ghost Dog executing Frank
16:41 neon pink and blue from fish aquarium
18:58 use of dissolve edits during dream/memory sequence as Ghost Dog lies on roof following the hit on Frank
20:10 close up of message received by a pigeon
21:06 low angle slightly canted angle shot of Ghost Dog opening up pigeon coup
21:51 Ghost Dog watching pigeons in the sky
24:00 frame in frame using fence posts
25:50 Louie’s POV staring at the 3 higher ups of the mob
29:43 shaky camera and desaturated tint during flashback sequence showing Louie meeting Ghost Dog when Louie saves his life
32:18 the wise guys talking about the names of rappers, Sonny even starts quoting some of their lyrics, hilarious
34:27 Ghost Dog doing the equivalent of shadow boxing with a sword on the rooftop of building, this is depicted with dissolves
35:20 Ice Cream truck man who is revealed to Ghost Dog’s best friend even though they don’t even speech the same language
35:45 guys freestyling on park bench to Raekwon’s 1995 song “Ice Cream”
39:22 Ghost Dog talks to young girl on park bench
45:30 the 2 older hitmen are exhausted just walking up the stairs
46:23 Gary Farmer cameo doesn’t add much to the narrative but amusing none the less
55:40 ice cream man is Ghost Dogs best friend even though they speak different languages
59:20 pans over dead pigeons on rooftop, this sequence cuts back and forth between the dead pigeons from Ghost Dog POV and close ups on the face of a devastated Ghost Dog
1:00:23 Ghost Dog taking out a case containing multiple guns followed by him assembling them
1:02:10 overhead shot of the city similar to shot opening the film
1:07:13 great composition capturing all the wise guys in a single room
1:07:43 green and blue neon lighting as Ghost Dog moves through underpass
1:15:07 sniper rifle POV
1:15:38 bird flying into Ghost Dog’s weapon might be an homage to Seijun Suzuki’s Branded to Kill where you have a butterfly interrupting a scene involving a sniper rifle
1:17:44 Ghost Dog moves through the Mob house; the rapid camera movements are effective in capturing the energy of the sequence with Ghost Dog killing off most of the Mob
1:22:49 “in ancient cultures bears were considered equals”
1:23:00 low angle POV followed to the screen fade to black following execution shot
1:34:40 beautiful composition with neon green and blue lighting in low angle of Ghost Dog leaving murder scene
1:35:23 Sonny listening and dancing to rap music inside his house, hilarious
1:37:08 low angle close up of Sonny staring at the red dot coming from the sink in a ludicrous complicated murder
1:38:16 slow motion shot of Ghost Dog walking down street followed by a slow motion shot of RZA from Wu Tang doing the same, technically RZA is playing a character but it’s really more of a cameo
1:46:00 ice cream man upset when Ghost Dog orders Louie to shoot him
1:46:33 Ghost Dog walks toward Louie with multiple bullet wounds
1:47:15 cut to a wide angle shot of Louie standing over a dying Ghost Dog
1:49:04 slow motion shot of Louie running to the car
1:50:12 gods eye view shot of a dead and bloodied Ghost Dog lying in the middle of the street
Thoughts:
Jarmusch again manages to blend multiple genres, themes, and styles together that create something wholly unique. The narrative is certainly very plot heavy, but the film has elements of a character study. Jean Pierre Melville’s Le Samurai (1967) is a clear influence as is Seijun Suzuki’s Branded to Kill (1967)
But perhaps the most fascinating element of the film is the culture blend as he mixes Japanese samurai philosophy with elements of hip hop culture including east coast rap music and places it into a plot revolving around Italian mob movie characters. The mob characters operate out of a Chinese Restaurant instead of an Italian one
I love the use of dissolves throughout the film. They are used not only in transitioning between scenes but even within a single frame as they are used to highlight the stealth nature of the character. The way Ghost Dog moves is fascinating in and of itself, he has the uncanny ability to move through areas without attracting attention
I like Jarmusch’s use of dark blue, he uses this in skyline shots. The color is fitting given the solitude of Ghost Dog. There are several nighttime shots with neon blue and neon green
Throughout the film Ghost Dog recites passages from Hagakure; a book which contains elements of the Samurai Code (also known as Bushido). Overall, Ghost Dog is not as structured as much of Jarmusch’s previous work, which is by no means a complaint
Jarmusch’s tracking shots of cities or towns is present in this film a couple of times when Ghost Dog is walking to various destinations
RZA of Wu Tang Clan does the soundtrack which is great. He also has a great cameo in the later part of the film. I listen to all, or at least most, music genres. I do not listen to rap music nearly as much as I did as a teenager, but Wu Tang is straight up awesome and when I do listen to rap today, there’s a 50 percent chance it is Wu Tang related. It is also perfect for this film as Wu Tang Clan consists of a group of black Americans who have a fascination with certain elements of Asian Cinematic Culture, in particular related to Kung-fu movies
Apparently Jarmusch wrote the role specifically for Forest Whitaker and would not have made the film had turned it down. I have always been impressed with Forest Whitaker; he is perfect for this role as he is a big guy who can be imposing but is not really intimidating. There is a duality to the character as he is a skilled assassin but is also a reserved, soft spoken man. He was a degree of kindness in the way he treats the non-mob characters, in particular the young girl and the ice cream man. This is a physical performance from Whitaker, as noted above, Whitaker’s Ghost Dog has this ability to move through areas without drawing attention. This is further emphasized during the scene where he moves throughout the Mob’s house holding a gun in each hand a la John Woo while Ghost Dog executes everyone inside
Unlike many mob films there is absolutely no glorification of the wise guys, on the contrary they are shown to be quite pathetic in many humorous ways; the two hitmen who are utterly exhausted just from walking up a couple flights of stairs, the landlord complaining about the mob guys being late on their rent payments, and just their overall incompetence as they are constantly messing up
This is a very funny movie at times, I love the scene when Louie tells the Mob about Ghost Dog, explaining that he pays him once a year always on “the first day of Autumn” and exchanges messages via “pigeons”. I also love that Ghost Dog’s best friend is a Haitian ice cream truck driver named Raymond who speaks French; thus, they do not even speak the same language
Verdict: MS
@James Trapp- really good write-up here – such an eccentric film
@Drake – thanks, Study is exceeding expectations thus far…and I had high hopes going in
Dead Man (1995)
Notes:
Johnny Depp as William Blake
Gary Farmer as Nobody
Robert Mitchum as John Dickinson
3:33 POV of western landscape resembling Monument Valley
4:09 low angle static shot of smoke from the train polluting the air, high contrast use of black and white photography
4:18 unsettling shot of Train Fireman (Crispin Glover) with coal covered face
4:53 another POV shot
6:07 Train Fireman references William Blake lying down on a boat staring up at sky, conversation filled with hostility
8:16 Blake is warned by coal faced train passenger about the hostility of the town which he also describes as “the end of the line”
11:27 men holding up a coffin is followed by shots of skulls
12:30 hostile environment with unfriendly people
15:20 John Hurt tries to warn Blake about Dickinson
16:09 pan across room to portrait of John Dickinson played by the great Robert Mitchum, shortly after Mr. Dickinson appears holding a shotgun at William Blake and telling him off
18:09 overhead shot of industrial warehouse
21:31 Blake helps attractive woman in the street
24:45 Blake and attractive woman in bed when the woman’s boyfriend walks in
26:30 Blake gets in the middle of a lover’s quarrel which leads to a jealous man Charlie, who just happens to be the son of the megalomaniac John Dickinson. Blake is shot and wounded but not dead. However, Charlie and the woman are dead which means Blake is marked for death
28:49 close up low angle shot of the face of Gary Farmer’s character who is named “Nobody”
28:58 “stupid fuc*in white man” Gary Farmer’s character is hilarious in this film
29:33 low angle shot of Nobody from Blake’s POV
30:06 three hitmen sit in Dickinson’s office and start to practice drawing their weapon
31:08 Dickinson standing with back to camera next to bear
35:46 after the 3 bounty hunters move along the path there is a shot of the letter confirming Blake’s employment cut to an unsettling close up on Blake’s face
42:18 low angle shot with camera positioned near the ground, capturing Blake and Nobody on horses with score blaring
49:00 white forest sequence, beautiful imagery as Blake and Nobody ride on horses through white tree forest while Nobody recounts his life story to Blake with Neil Young score playing
56:12 Blake approaches the camp of 3 men sitting around fire eating
1:01:34 Blake sees his face on a post declaring him to be a murderer
1:02:26 “I have not understood a single word you’ve said to me” a frustrated Blake talking to Nobody
1:05:45 camera held following one of the three hitmen shot dead by another of the hitmen
1:07:10 close up on Blake’s face as he looks sleepy and a little bit sick
1:09:33 Blake’s face changes to that of a skeleton and shortly after changes back
1:16:00 Blake kills two bounty hunters
1:17:00 pan to overhead shot of the other dead bounty hunter whose head is in the middle of the sticks arranged for the fire from the previous night
1:20:35 Blake repeats lines from early in the film when he “insists on speaking with Mr. Dickinson
1:23:14 bounty hunter hit from arrow offscreen
1:25:23 overhead shot of Blake lying next to dead animal
1:25:35 spinner POV shot from Blake staring up at the sky
1:30:54 another scene with especially gorgeous imagery as they ride horses through the forest
1:38:35 Blake kills 2 more men
1:39:39 Blake in foreground shot by man in deep background of the frame
1:42:05 Nobody and Blake in a canoe going down a river
1:44:32 Native American imagery with statue
1:47:33 electric guitar heavy score matching the hallucinatory scene
1:51:01 POV shot from Blake looking around and seeing skulls and skeletons around the campsite
1:51:50 Blake moving in and out of consciousness as he sees group of Native Americans, dissolves and distorted imagery
1:54:10 Nobody tells Blake “this world will no longer concern you” before Blake is pushed away in canoe by himself
1:55:28 POV from Blake of man sneaking up on Nobody and shooting at him leading to Nobody shooting back resulting in both dying
1:56:41 shot of sky from Blake’s POV
Thoughts:
The more films I watch, the harder it becomes to see a film that feels wholly unique. So, congratulations to Jim Jarmusch because Dead Man is unlike any other film that I have seen. This film is straight up genius as Jarmusch subverts the Western genre and creates a hypnotic journey in monochrome
This is a gorgeous film, the white tree forest is the most stunning imagery I have seen from Jarmusch thus far along with the canoe scene from Down by Law (1986). The photography captures the stark beauty of this world which captures both the natural world and the harsh industrial landscape represented by the fictional town of Machine. There is a sort of juxtaposition between the beautiful natural world and the brutality of mankind
Jarmusch examination of culture clashes continues as here as the Native American Nobody (Gary Farmer) is a sort of guide for Blake during their strange journey. Nobody explains various Native American concepts and phrases to Blake throughout the film. There is a humorous moment late in the film when a frustrated Blake complains to Nobody that he “hasn’t understood a single word he’s said to him” or something to that effect
Neil Young does the score, and its value cannot be overstated as it accentuates the fever dream atmosphere. According to Young, he recorded the score while watching the film by renting out a sound stage and placing 20 monitors, each showing the film in a circle. He then had multiple instruments inside the circle of monitors and just improvised. Apparently, this was the approach that was commonly used during the silent era. Young uses an electric guitar far more than any of the other instruments
This is a highly atmospheric film, which is established right from the opening with the frequent fade to black edits and POV shots of Depp’s Blake looking out the window. The hypnotic atmosphere near the end is especially effective with dissolve edits as Blake seems to be slipping in and out of consciousness
Johnny Depp is a far more dynamic actor than he gets credit for. On a mainstream level he is often associated with the zany roles in his collaborations with Tim Burton and of course the eccentric Captain Jack Sparrow from The Pirates of the Caribbean Franchise. Yet Depp is adept at playing tough guy roles. In Black Mass (2015) Depp is tremendous as the bone chilling Whitey Bulger. He brings visceral energy as the infamous bank robber John Dillinger in Michael Mann’s Public Enemies (2009). Here Depp is not playing eccentric or a tough guy but rather a straight edge accountant who becomes involved in a dangerous situation that he clearly was not looking for
This is the final significant performance of Robert Mitchum, and he is immaculate as John Dickinson, as the shotgun toting megalomaniac who puts the bounty on Blake for killing his son. I love Mitchum’s character standing in front of his portrait. Great casting choice
I have always had an affinity for what I have referred in the past as “Epic Journeys” and this would certainly qualify as that. The film is a sort of spiritual journey where the destination is death. In fact, the film in many ways is a mediation on death and this is established within the first 10 minutes with the coal faced train passenger who refers to the town of Machine as “the last stop on the line” and Depp’s William Blake sees symbols of death throughout the film including coffins and skulls. This is a film that will naturally invite a great deal of analysis
I love the use of overhead shots in several scenes or what Scorsese would call “gods eye view” with Depp’s Blake lying on the ground with the camera spinning. This adds to the hypnotic or dreamlike atmosphere. There are also POV shots of Blake looking up at the sky during his presumed death at the end of the film
Verdict: MP
@James Trapp- well done- “Neil Young does the score, and its value cannot be overstated as it accentuates the fever dream atmosphere” love this
@Drake – thanks, such a fascinating film. Loving this Study so far, got Ghost Dog next
@James Trapp- thank you for the fix here
Night on Earth (1991)
Notes:
Starts with shot of the Earth from outer space and the camera pans over a globe
2:54 shot of 5 clocks each with name of City; Los Angeles, New York, Paris, Rome, Helsinki
3:04 camera moves over globe to Los Angeles
3:10 Montage of shots of LA
Winona Ryder as the Taxi Driver
Gena Rowlands as the passenger
15:27 Great Western Forum
16:00 blue and red neon lighting
27:20 another shot of the 5 clocks and this time it moves in on New York
Giancarlo Esposito as passenger
Armin Mueller-Stahl as Taxi Driver
Rosie Perez as passenger
33:08 the driver is so bad the Giancarlo Esposito characters demands to drive his cab
34:14 lit up Time Square at night
39:49 Rosie Perez being Rosie Perez
51:40 camera moves in on the Paris Clock
52:31 same blue and red neon lighting
Isaach De Bankolé as Taxi Driver
Béatrice Dalle as passenger
Emile Abossolo M’Bo & Pascal N’Zonzi as the African passengers
1:03:58 beautiful use of red and blue neon in two-shot inside cab with blind woman passenger
1:10:55 camera moves in on the Rome Clock
Roberto Benigni as Taxi Driver
Paolo Bonacelli as passenger
1:12:16 Roberto Benigni obnoxiously singing while driving his cab
1:13:41 shot of blue and green neon sign outside hotel
1:33:11 Roberto Benigni basically talks a man to death
1:37:18 camera moves in on Helsinki Clock
Matti Pellonpää as Taxi Driver
Kari Väänänen, Sakari Kuosmanen, and Tomi Salmela as passengers
1:37:50 montage of shots of the city
1:41:27 3 drunken workers enter cab
Thoughts:
This is a lesser Jarmusch film but still is auteur work with the continued style and structure from earlier films and themes as you have cultural intersection. For example, the New York segment features the Giancarlo Esposito character teaching the foreign born cabby different American phrases
This is another highly structured film with 5 Segments rather than 3 which was his usual breakdown prior to this film
The 5 Cities the film is set in are the following: Los Angeles, New York, Paris, Rome, Helsinki. There are shots where camera moves over a globe or map
The use of neon lighting is impressive, especially during the Paris sequence with the blind woman as the passenger
The cast contains some big names. I do like Winona Ryder a lot but she is horribly miscast here playing a sort of tomboy cab driver, it just does work. Giancarlo Esposito is great, probably my favorite performance
Verdict: R
@James Trapp- I’m yet to see anything special in Winona Ryder’s performances tbh. She can only really play naive, shy young ladies. She is likeable and genuine but can never really elevate or lit up her scenes. Even Bridget Fonda was so much better imo.
** it just does Not work
Mystery Train (1989)
Notes:
Starts with shot of train approaching and fade to black
1:25 a Japanese couple who are about 18 or 19 years old and are on a vacation to Memphis. The man is Jun (Masatoshi Nagase) and the woman Mitsuko (Youki Kudoh)
2:14 Elvin’s “train arrives” song plays
4:32 train window creates a frame in frame
5:33 Jun is wearing green jacket and carries red suitcase with Mitsuko
7:23 Jun notes that he prefers the “Yokohama” train station to the Memphis one
9:17 Elvis vs Carl Perkins
10:05 series of tracking shots begin as young Japanese couple
11:02 frame in frame through glass window of guide of Sun Record recording studio
13:25 walk through Memphis with dilapidated buildings and foreclosed businesses
16:00 low angle shot of Elvis Statue
16:20 Just like “Yokohama” but more space is how the Japanese man describes Memphis
17:35 neon lit street including Hotel the couple enters
18:10 Screamin Jay Hawkins in saturated red suite
27:57 red lipstick on the faces of the couple as they smoke cigarettes sitting in hotel room
30:20 great profile shot of the Japanese man, with splitting of frame with green neon on one side and red neon on the other
34:30 overhead shot of the couple lying in bed after having sex
A Ghost
40:45 2nd story begins and is set around Luisa (Nicoletta Braschi)
45:55 local mart owner convinces Luisa to purchase a bunch of magazines
46:56 tracking shot through city is repeated from the first story
49:51 another discussion about Elvis with man in diner talking to Luisa
51:57 Luisa pays man $20 for providing an amusing story
54:02 Dee Dee (Elizabeth Bracco) arrives at hotel and is initially told to leave since she lacks enough money until Luisa arrives at hotel and agrees to room with her to split costs
54:20 green suitcase and red handbag
58:19 subtle use of green in hotel room
1:02:02 shot of the train moving through the overpass in the background of the frame
1:01:05 same hotel as the first segment
1:05:31 holographic image of Elvin in hotel room standing in front of Elvis painting on the wall
1:05:46 Luisa has a conversation with the ghost of Elvis
Lost in Space
1:09:37 the third story starts inside neon lit bar with Johnny “Elvis” (played by Joe Strummer of The Clash) and Ed (Vondie Curtis-Hall) talking as a drunken Johnny rants
1:14:21 Charlie the Barber played by Steve Buscemi
1:16:40 Will Robinson (Rick Aviles) and Charlie (Steve Buscemi) go to bar to pick up Johnny
1:19:10 green lighting and moderate green tint
1:21:10 the trio of friends; Johnny, Will, and Charlie rob liquor store with Johnny unexpectedly killing the store’s owner leading to the 3 fleeing the area
1:25:50 another shot of the train moving through the overpass in the background of the frame, this is the third time in the film
1:32:33 Elvis painting in otherwise decrepit hotel room
1:35:30 the trio does some hard drinking, passing around a bottle of bourbon
1:40:27 Charlie finds out Johnny is not actually his brother in law
1:41:40 gunshot is heard by front desk after Charlie and Johnny wrestle following Johnny putting a gun to his head about to commit suicide
1:43:06 overhead shot of hotel room following reveal that Charlie was shot during struggle
1:43:43 the Japanese couple from first story return to the train wearing the same clothes from earlier. Shortly after Dee Dee from the second story enters the train
1:44:52 tracking shot of Luisa running to catch her plane
Bookend with final shot being the train traveling and the same song
Thoughts:
Jarmusch with another spectacular film structured around 3 stories with minor overlap. However, unlike his two pervious films which featured a trio of characters in 3 different locations, in this film you have one location with three different sets of characters. The 3 segments are not equal in length as the first and third are about 40 minutes each and the second part is about 25 minutes
Stranger than Paradise (1984) featured 3 main characters including a 16 year Hungarian girl who comes to the United States and seems to have an underwhelming experience. The first story of this film involves a young Japanese couple who are probably recent High School graduates and are on a sort of pilgrimage. The male who is named Jun (Masatoshi Nagase) and his girlfriend Mitsuko (Youki Kudoh) have a few friendly arguments over music. Mitsuko is excited to see Sun Record Studio and has a fascination with Elvis (more on that below) and she is a bit more enthusiastic than her boyfriend Jun who prefers Carl Perkins and seems to be less impressed by Memphis than Mitsuko. At one point Jun notes that the Memphis Train Station is a less impressive version of the one in their hometown. This reminds me of Eddie’s line from Stranger Than Paradise, upon their arrival in Cleveland: “It’s funny, you come someplace new, and everything looks just the same” – Eddie
Jarmusch switches up by using color with green dominating the production design and mise en scene as you have green jacket, green suitcase, green walls inside hotel, green neon lighting during some of the night scenes, and even subtle green tint in some of the frames
Jarmusch uses tracking shots of the characters walking through the city in all 3 of the story lines although for the third story the tracking shot occurs from inside the car. There are shots that are repeated throughout the three story lines, one involves a train moving over the elevated tracks. The tracking shots through Memphis show how dilapidated much of the city is with boarded up buildings and rundown businesses. Clearly this is a city long past its glory days
Not sure any auteur I have covered aside from, perhaps the Coen Brothers are so invested in creating authentic locations for the setting of their films. So many films are set in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, Florida, or Texas amongst other cities or states; I love when films are set in less frequently used locations
I like Joe Strummer of The Clash as Johnny. It is especially funny given that The Clash best album, London Calling, pays homage to Elvis 1956 self-titled debut album as The Clash use the same art design in the album’s cover
This is sort of a side note but I admit to being a little baffled at the cultural relevance that Elvis has been able to maintain. I mean I get that he was a counterculture figure like James Dean and therefore appealed to a younger generation of people post WW2. I realize that he was considered to be a talented entertainer who could sing and dance and wore flashy outfits. But even considering all those things, the attention he still maintains seems excessive. Apparently, there are still thousands of Elvis impersonators in the US and even outside of it. Graceland is one of the five most frequently visited home tours, some sites even placed it second to only the White House in terms of the number of visitors it attracts. To be clear I have no problem with Elvis and love the movie’s soundtrack which includes a few Elvis songs. I am just surprised by his cultural relevancy to this day
This is an excellent film all around; idiosyncratic characters, steadily paced, consistent use of green and even use of neon lighting, subtle humor, greats soundtrack
Verdict: MS
@James Trapp- Enjoying reading this and your Down by Law write-up today. Thank you for sharing there. It does feel like you’re visiting these cities.
@Drake – thanks, very enjoyable Study so far. Very different styles but Jarmusch like Altman and The Coen Brothers seems very Americana
Down by Law (1986)
Notes:
Tom Waits as Zack
John Lurie as Jack
Roberto Benigni as Roberto aka Bob
Nicoletta Braschi as Nicoletta
Starts series of tracking shots through New Orleans
4:04 series of tracking shots through New Orleans including beautiful shot of swamp
4:53 opening credits
6:11 Ellen Barkin has angry breakdown in room with boyfriend Zack played by Tom Waits
10:12 Zack walking through littered streets
17:33 man tries to convince Jack to purchase a prostitute
25:25 unsettling low canted angle shot of man standing over Zack
32:56 tracking shot through a row of jail cells
36:07 a two shot with Jack in foreground along with prison bars and Zack in background
41:27 Jack and Zack sitting against wall of jail cell, graffiti and drawings on the wall
45:00 static camera showing Zack drawing on wall inside cell, for some reason this leads to a fight
46:20 Roberto Benigni as Roberto aka Bob, enters the jail cell so 3 of them in one cell
47:44 Roberto aka Bob telling jokes like a standup comedian
48:09 triangle composition as the three stare in different directions
54:26 the trio standing next to each other behind prison bars
59:39 “I scream we all scream for ice cream” this is repeated numerous times in a ridiculous way as they chant it and march around the tiny cell like a choreographed dance movement
1:01:17 shot of row of 4 guards in background towering over the trio
1:04:33 silhouette imagery as the trio make their escape through a tunnel
1:05:55 the trio moving through swamp lands
1:10:00 the trio sits in the swamp
1:11:15 tracking shot as the trio walks along riverbank
1:12:00 the trio find an empty cabin on the riverbank
1:13:42 the cabin resembles a prison cell with bunk beds
1:16:20 long shot of the trio in a canoe and the camera gliding toward them
1:18:57 high angle shot of the trio in a diagonal line watching their canoe sink in the stamp
1:27:42 the trio are flanked in the frame by trees on both sides and a road with no end in sight
1:29:45 Luigi’s Tintop
1:31:31 Jack and Zack look into the house and see Bob eating dinner with an attractive Italian woman named Nicoletta sitting across from him. The actress who plays this character is Roberto Benigni’s real life wife although they were not yet married until 1991
1:33:07 the trio eat food at dinner table with the Italian woman
The film ends with a beautiful shot as Zack and Jack encounter a fork in the road
Thoughts:
The film starts with a strikingly beautiful series of tracking shots in New Orleans. Tom Waits not only acts but also does the score and it is crucial to the atmosphere
The film has three key locations; New Orleans streets, Orleans Parish Prison, and the swamp although it is not quite as structured as Stranger than Paradise. This film has more plot than Stranger than Paradise (1984) which was more vignette based
This is a Beautiful film with crisp black and white photography. This is one element of this film that is actually superior to Stranger than Paradise. While the inside of the jail looks appropriately grimy the shots of the swamp waters are breathtaking. The canoe travels over swamp waters producing stunningly gorgeous images of the characters reflections as they move over the water with trees surrounding them
Roberto Benigni’s character Bob serves as the catalyst for the trio as Zack and Jack having somewhat similar personalities, both are stubborn and do not want to back down from each other making Bob a necessity for the group
The “we all scream for ice cream” scene is so bizarre yet hilarious in the way it organically comes together and ramps up the energy before abruptly ending when the guards show up
Elliptical editing used, for example the jail break sequence goes from Bob speaking to a guard and a cut to the trio running through a tunnel as they make their escape from jail
I love the sheer absurdity of Bob just stumbling on an attractive single Italian woman owning her own business/house in the middle of a Louisiana swamp
Verdict: MS/HR
Stranger Than Paradise (1984)
Notes:
John Lurie as Willie
Eszter Balint as Eva
Richard Edson as Eddie
New York
Opens with Eva at airport in desolate area
2:10 low angle shot of Willie
3:10 “disrupting my life” hilarious coming from guy who does nothing
4:08 “put a spell on you” plays from boombox that Eva carries with her starting a tracking shot of Eva walking through dilapidated part of New York
6:30 Eva shows up at Willie’s apartment, they are cousins and both from Hungary although Willie has lived in US for a while
7:43 another fade to black edit
11:37 Willie eating TV dinner and Budweiser
13:25 Willie’s friend Eddie shows up
16:10 Willie explains the rules of football which plays on TV
18:27 fade to black edit
20:13 Eva vacuums
22:55 Willie doesn’t like Eva’s music, Screamin Jay Hawkins “I put a spell on you”
27:24 Eva and Eddie make small talk as she leaves town for Cleveland
30:05 Willie and Eddie drink Budweiser and sit without talking
Cleveland
30:20 Willie and Eddie playing poker with 3 other guys
32:32 Willie and Eddie leave after being accused of cheating
33:18 high angle shot of Willie and Eddie in narrow hallway of graffiti filled apartment building
35:57 Willie and Eddie taking road trip to Cleveland with their small poker winnings
37:53 “I thought you were American” “I’m as American as you are”
39:37 tracking shot from inside car of industrial area in Cleveland
40:48 arrival at Willie’s aunt’s house in Cleveland, snow outside
44:15 fade to black edit followed by visiting Willie and Eddie visiting Eva at the hot dog restaurant where she is excited to see them
46:14 Eva’s boyfriend
48:20 shot of Willie, Eddie, Eva, and Eva’s boyfriend in foreground at movie theatre, viewer cannot see the actual movie in the movie, just like early with the football game
51:23 “you come someplace new, and everything looks the same” Eddie as the friends stand on snow filled train tracks
53:17 Willie’s aunt beats Willie and Eddie at cards
54:10 Eva paces back and forth in hallway while talking to boyfriend on phone
55:27 shot of the trio with their backs turned to camera, high contrast use of black and white with the lake a near solid wall of white
59:44 Willie and Eddie pick up Eva and the three start their road trip to Florida, they are upbeat, this is followed by with a scene of the 3 of them traveling and seeming down, a contrast with the prior scene leading Eva to take out the boom box and play “Put a Spell on You” again
Florida
1:02:18 low angle shot of car outside Satellite Motel and palm trees in background of the frame
1:02:57 the trio wearing sunglasses and posing next to the car with a “Welcome to Florida” sign in the background
1:05:20 Eva ducking down so motel manager thinks 2 people instead of 3
1:12:55 Eva at picnic table with empty beach in background
1:20:05 Eva counts money in hotel room
1:21:30 Willie and Eddie return to hotel room after a big win at the track
1:22:17 Willie reads note left by Eva
Bookend with the shot of the plane
Thoughts:
Jim Jarmusch with a landmark Indie Film
” It’s funny, you come someplace new, and everything looks just the same” – Eddie
The above quote, which comes from Willie’s best friend Eddie, perfectly sums up the world of the film which takes place in 3 locations, and nothing seems to change for any of the film’s 3 main characters
The set up could not be much simpler; a slacker named Willie receives an unexpected visit from his 16 year old Hungarian cousin named Eva. The film features various vignettes featuring Willie, Eva, and Willie’s best friend Eddie
Despite its simplicity the film is highly structured with 3 segments that last 30 minutes and separated by location; New York, Cleveland, and Florida. There is also a bookend with the shot of the plane. There are 67 shots with each shot ending with the screen fading to black. After completing a Godard Study recently, I cannot not help but notice a similarity here as you are reminded that this is a movie rather than the film attempting to immerse you into its world. There is little in the way of camera movement as the film features a static camera in most of the sequences
The vignettes consist of the the characters eating TV dinners, watching football on TV, playing Poker, betting on dog races, driving across multiple states, going to the movies, going to the beach, etc. And you are watching the characters doing this more than being a part of it. For example, when they watch football on TV with Willie explaining the rules to Eva you (the viewer) just see the back of the TV which is in the foreground and you cannot see the actual game they are watching, it is the same with a movie theatre scene
There is a sort of inertia in this narrative where you keep waiting for something to happen, and nothing really does but the film just keeps moving along at a constant pace; there are no drastic changes in the tone from shot to shot. Nothing really happens, yet by the end you are strangely satisfied with the experience
The use of graffiti in the mise en scene accentuates the strange and foreign world the characters inhabit. I would not categorize the atmosphere of this film as oppressive such as the strange world of David Lynch’s Eraserhead (1977) but it is obviously far away from mainstream society
I love the shot a little before the 63 minute mark with the trio wearing sunglasses and posing next to the car with a “Welcome to Florida” sign in the background, they are all looking off in different directions shortly after arriving in Florida. It is a perfect photograph for a postcard. It also functions as a symbol the fleeting sense of excitement the characters have upon arriving in new locations
American identity is a thematic element of the film. Willie is a Hungarian American who was born in Hungary but has lived in the US for a long time. He is initially cold to his 16 year old Hungarian cousin who speaks English fluently but not as well as him. Eddie is surprised to learn Willie is Hungarian and says “I thought you are American” although he does not mean this is an offensive way although Willie is clearly annoyed and even seems a bit ashamed of his Hungarian background
I think Eva’s experience could be seen as a sort of disappointment of the American Dream, she moves to the US and tries 3 different locations, and all end up being kind of underwhelming. Of course, it is not like any of the characters make much of an effort at anything
An Indie Masterpiece
Verdict: MP
@James Trapp- well done! “I love the shot a little before the 63 minute mark with the trio wearing sunglasses and posing next to the car with a “Welcome to Florida” sign in the background, they are all looking off in different directions shortly after arriving in Florida. It is a perfect photograph for a postcard.”
My ranking of Jarmusch`s films that I`ve seen:
1. Dead Man MP
2. Stranger Than Paradise MP
3. The Limits of Control MS
4. Paterson MS
5. Down by Law MS
6. Mystery Train MS
7. Broken Flowers MS
8. Night on Earth HR/MS
9. Only Lovers Left Alive HR/MS
10. Ghost Dog HR
5 Best Performances
1. Depp- Dead Man 5
2. Murray- Broken Flowers 5
3. Driver- Paterson 5
4. Whitaker- Ghost Dog 4.5
5. Benigni- Down by Law 4.5
Apparently Jim is shooting a film with Cate Blanchett??!! Couldn’t be more excited about this collaboration.
@Joel – I’ve read this- too- very excited as well!
Excellent picks. You would also have to consider Leone and Godard among them, both revolutionary in their own right.
Yes for sure. Godard is my fav director and mostly for his playful editing style. and leone is awesome too. really did the best “battle” sequences with his shootouts
@Big chungus- I have not seen it but should- and it looks like it is on Criterion streaming as well
Drake who would you consider the top 10 or so best editors? Eisenstein and ozu for sure. Maybe coppola, nolan, jarmusch, hitchcock? Who else would you consider amongst the best?
@Big chungus- I like these choices- and yes to DeclanG’s additions. Can we make room for Oliver Stone’s mad montage approach? Malick has become an auteur who shoots and then builds his films in the editing room. Griffith’s genius in Intolerance? Dreyer’s Joan of Arc is one of the best edited films of all-time. WKW? Raging Bull has some sequences that are as finely edited as anything. Peckinpah for sure. Roeg. We’re over 10 now but I like this list
Thankyou for this… id maybe say kurosawa (his battle sequences at least), welles (has some very good instances but editing is not really tied to his aesthetic as much as say eisenstein or stone), and truffaut (id consider freeze frames a part of editing moreso than cinematography)
[…] 37. Jim Jarmusch […]
Ghost Dog has to be one of the most bizarre genre movies in the way it mixes samurai philosophy with hip hop and Italian mob movies. At times to what extent it was intended to be humorous but I did enjoy.
I just recently got into Jarmusch so I’m going to check out more.
Are there any directors to compare with Jarmusch? So far I’ve seen this and Dead Man as well as Stranger than Paradise and have enjoyed all 3
@James Trapp– maybe try Finnish director Aki Kaurismäki– I did a study of most of his available work in 2020– he and Jarmusch were buddies- and you can see some similarities
Title is ‘Stranger Than Paradise’
@David Tindall- yikes- thank you for the help/fix- much appreciated