A film by Jim Jarmusch

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Richard--W, Jun 30, 2019.

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  1. beccabear67

    beccabear67 Musical omnivore.

    Location:
    Victoria, Canada
    Mystery Train for me too, just incredible fun. I also really dug the Fishing With John appearance! :laugh:

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
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  2. zombiemodernist

    zombiemodernist Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northeastern USA

    Ahh, I knew I should have been a bit more clear, I really meant "John Ford era" as in old Hollywood Westerns. Totally agree that Ford himself was a bit more morally complex than the rest of the crowd IMO, and arguably his later work in the genre like The Searches is even a deconstructionist western itself. Plus his filming techniques were innovative and always pushing the boundaries of visual narrative. Still, in no real shock due to the era, The Searchers is fairly regressive in many ways that Dead Man is not, particularly on portrayals race. Personally I found to film to be really funny on first viewing, and found the humor around race relations to be pretty much in line with other mid 90s films covering similar ground.

    The unnaturalness of the film is really the appeal to me. I've seen the film labeled as a "psychedelic western" which feels a bit off to me, due to the total lack of color, but it really does have a "trippy" vibe to it. I think the total lack of a moral tale of any sort is really unique and fun. I think even the most revisionist westerns still traffic heavily in moralism, like Unforgiven earlier in the decade, or in the literary world McCarthy's Blood Meridian, and even the Leone films. Dead Man really just doesn't care and I love that.

    Have not seen his latest film. It's only playing on the other side of town from me, and I haven't heard good enough stuff to go out of my way make the trip over.
     
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  3. This is also the movie that put former Sonic Youth drummer Richard Edson on the path to becoming a successful That Guy in Hollywood.
     
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  4. Holerbot6000

    Holerbot6000 Forum Resident

    Location:
    California
    I just recently saw Broken Flowers where Bill Murray really puts the dead in Deadpan, but it's a funny movie. Great soundtrack too.
     
  5. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law

    I do really love that song!
     
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  6. rockerreds

    rockerreds Senior Member

    Broken Flowers- the best film I saw that year!
     
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  7. Richard--W

    Richard--W Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Yeah that was pretty damn funny.
    I was totally harmonious with Mystery Train and Night On Earth
    when they were new. Looking back, I think they might be his best
    films. The only one I've never liked is Dead Man. It rubs me the
    wrong way. I have just bought every single Jarmuch film on blu-ray
    and two on DVD and I'm going to have a marathon over the holiday
    weekend.
     
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  8. Somewhat Damaged

    Somewhat Damaged Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    I think it tells you something that this thread died already after only a few comments. His stuff just doesn’t click with anyone beyond a small number of film buffs.
     
  9. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law

    I would think he'd gat more 'play' here, having such great musicians in his movies.
     
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  10. Richard--W

    Richard--W Forum Resident Thread Starter

    I thought Jarmusch would be more popular here, frankly.

    Last night we watched Mystery Train. It's even better than I remembered.
     
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  11. Dulzaina

    Dulzaina Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Melbourne
    Just realised I've seen them all bar two. And I rarely watch movies. The distance between his movies and any others his huge in terms of quality IMO. Gasper Noe is also interesting.
     
  12. TheVU

    TheVU Forum Resident

    I really like Night On Earth. The visuals and soundtrack just hit home for me.

    I love the look of city at night. I’m a big night owl highway driver. So this felt really familiar.

    This and many of his movies are great alternatives to what comes and goes at the cinema. I think there should be more Jim’s out there.

    My really good film buddy disagrees, harshly.
     
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  13. wolfram

    wolfram Slave to the rhythm

    Location:
    Berlin, Germany
    Jarmush was really hip in my circles back then. I can still remember seeing the "Down By Law" trailer in movies theatres and thinking how incredibly cool it looked, with the b/w picture and Tom Waits singing. We watched "Down By Law" repeatedly back then (just like "Night On Earth") and afterwards every new Jarmush film was a must-see about up to "Ghost Dog" I think (though I still watched "Coffee and Cigarettes" right away when it came out and thought it was hilarious). But I even watched all the later ones eventually, except for "Paterson" for some reason, which I might have to rectify soon.

    I thought "The Dead Don’t Die" was ok, not great and I didn't know what to make of "Limits of Control", but apart from these two I really liked every Jarmush film I've seen.

    So yes, I share your surprise at the slow response to this thread.
     
  14. wolfram

    wolfram Slave to the rhythm

    Location:
    Berlin, Germany


    To this day, whenever I hear "Jockey Full Of Bourbon" (and I listen to Tom Waits a lot), I see these street shots from the trailer in my mind.
     
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  15. Dulzaina

    Dulzaina Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Melbourne
    @Dave Hoos I recommend getting through this list.
     
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  16. 93curr

    93curr Senior Member

    I think my biggest problem with NOE is the order in which they're presented. The first one is by far the best, and every subsequent segment just gets less and less interesting. Sometimes it's just not a great idea to put the hit single as the first track on side one.
     
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  17. Richard--W

    Richard--W Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Your point is well-taken. I've always found the film too long. I'm
    not sure if I'd cut a segment or shorten the exposition along the
    way, but it feels 30 minutes over the limit to me. What's there is
    wonderful, however, even if it's too long.
     
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  18. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    I voted for Night on Earth. Jarmusch is a bit too stylized and his direction with a lead actor for an entire film gets old for me, but works really well for shorts. Being a series of vignettes, I think the concept and approach used in NoE is the perfect vehicle for Jarmusch.
     
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  19. vince

    vince Stan Ricker's son-in-law

    For "C&S", the vignettes are even shorter!
     
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  20. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    Why is the first segment by far the best? I guess you can make an argument for it being the best, but someone can make a strong argument for each other segment. They are each haunting in their own ways. I thought both actresses in the first segment did well but you could see they were trying too hard to act that they were playing cool with each other. If the segment had to go on much longer, it would have lagged and started being cumbersome. For me this is the problem with all of Jarmusch's work.
     
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  21. ruben lopez

    ruben lopez Nunc Est Bibendum

    Location:
    Barcelona Spain
    Haven't seen all of his movies but definetely Dead Man.
    some of those movies must to be seen a couple of times to make a good judgement
    I'm thinking of Limits Of Control for example.
     
  22. Richard--W

    Richard--W Forum Resident Thread Starter

    I agree that short vignettes linked by a central theme is Jarmusch's
    particular strength and a comfortable way to tell a deadpan story.
    On the other hand I responded well to the freewheeling narrative
    Stranger Than Paradise. That film's refusal to implement story-
    telling conventions is precisely what makes it strong.

    The poll allows for two votes. Vote for your second favorite as well.
     
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  23. jupiterboy

    jupiterboy Forum Residue

    Location:
    Buffalo, NY
    Lovers, just to be a little contrarian.
     
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  24. Richard--W

    Richard--W Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Yeah, I never drove a cab but I used to enjoy cruising the city at night
    with friends, but not anymore. Maybe if I was back in New York I'd
    enjoy it again or maybe it's my age and the fact that nightlife has
    changed. The police are out for revenge now. They've changed, too.

    I follow the work of Hal Hartley, Edward Burns and Whit Stillman,
    among other independents. They're interesting but not like Jarmusch.
    I can't think of another filmmaker remotely close to Jarmusch. I hope
    he has more films in him.
     
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  25. Somewhat Damaged

    Somewhat Damaged Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Do you take Edward Burns seriously as a writer-director? I've seen a few of his films. Watchable but lightweight. He's an actor pretending to be a writer-director IMO. I can't take his work seriously at all.
     
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