 |
| Johnny Depp is Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man |
QUICK REVIEW:
William Blake arrives with train to the little town of Machine, where he doesn't get the job that he had expected. Instead he gets into a fix that makes him kill a man, and he is thereafter hunted through the wilderness with an Indian named Nobody by his side.
Dead Man is a fairytale-like, postmodern, philosophical western in B/W (photographed by the great Robby Müller (Breaking the Waves (1996))) with a superb ensemble cast, led by Johnny Depp (Donnie Brasco (1997)): Gary Farmer (Twist (2003)) as Nobody, Crispin Glover (Back to the Future (1985)), Lance Henriksen (Aliens (1986)), John Hurt (The Elephant Man (1980)), Robert Mitchum (The Night of the Hunter (1955)) - in his last screen performance, - Iggy Pop (Persepolis (2008), voice), Gabriel Byrne (Miller's Crossing (1990)), Jared Harris (Mad Men (2009-12)) and Mili Avital (The Human Stain (2003)). - And that's not even all of them!
Neil Young (Year of the Horse (1997)) has composed an outstanding score, which perfectly compliments the psychedelic feel that master filmmaker writer-director Jim Jarmusch's (Down by Law (1986)) characters spark.
Whether Dead Men hits you like a spiritual kick in the gut or as a more intellectually meaningful offering, the film is a rich, rewarding and very unique experience. - And one that requires an open mind.
It is possibly Ohioan Jarmusch's best film, equaled perhaps only by Mystery Train (1989).
Related reviews:
Jim Jarmusch: Broken Flowers (2005) - Hip search for son and self with Jarmusch and Murray
Coffee and Cigarettes (2003) - Pleasant, precious vignette sit-down with some wonderful people
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999) - Whitaker serves ancient samurai justive in Jarmusch's cool treat
Top 10: The best B/W movies reviewed by Film Excess to date
Watch the long trailer for the film here
Cost: 9 mil. $
Box office: 1 mil. $ (US only)
= Some uncertainty
[But most likely Dead Man should, appallingly, be counted as a huge flop. I have only a few international figures for the film's performance: It made 0.8 mil. $ in Australia, and in France, Germany and the Netherlands together, around 600k paid admission to see it. The film premiered in Cannes, and it is highly esteemed among Native Americans, who regard it as an extremely well-researched depiction of their different tribal cultures, use of different native languages etc. Critics reacted very differently to the film: Roger Ebert gave it a paltry 1½ stars; it seems he didn't understand the film at all! - While others, like Greil Marcus, Jonathan Rosenbaum and A. O. Scott, recognize it as a masterpiece.]
What do you think of Dead Man?
Do you think it is Jarmusch's greatest film?
No comments:
Post a Comment