Genre: Western, Fantasy
Director: Jim Jarmusch
Starring: Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Lance Henriksen, John Hurt, Robert Mitchum
Language: English, Cree, Blackfoot
Duration: 121 min.
Summary:
On the run after murdering a man, accountant William Blake encounters a
strange Indian named Nobody who prepares him for his journey into the
spiritual world.
Dead Man, December's LAMB Movie of the Month, is a film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. It premiered in competition at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival.
It's a trippy 19th century western shot entirely in black and white that follows Johnny Depp as William Blake, who may or may not be a reincarnation of the famous poet, but there certainly are plenty of allusions to support it, aboard a train heading west to a town called Machine to accept a job offer as an accountant. Of course once he arrives, there is no job waiting for him, and through an unlucky sequence of events, Blake finds himself wanted and on the run.
It's a trippy 19th century western shot entirely in black and white that follows Johnny Depp as William Blake, who may or may not be a reincarnation of the famous poet, but there certainly are plenty of allusions to support it, aboard a train heading west to a town called Machine to accept a job offer as an accountant. Of course once he arrives, there is no job waiting for him, and through an unlucky sequence of events, Blake finds himself wanted and on the run.
Entirely poetic, with alternating moments of classic mystery and dreamlike absurdity, Jarmusch gives us an absolutely confounding vision of the west, but one that is fascinating to behold. The bulk of the film features Blake and a Native American spirit guide named Nobody (Gary Farmer), traveling on horseback to an unknown destination. It's punctuated with amusing cameos by the likes of Crispin Glover, John Hurt, Robert Mitchum, Iggy Pop, Billy Bob Thornton, Alfred Molina, Gabriel Byrne, and Lance Henriksen as a creepy cannibalistic bounty-hunter; and a beautifully improvised score featuring the textured solo guitar work of Neil Young.
Like a lot of Jarmusch's work, this one takes it's sweet time to go anywhere and leaves you quite baffled, but the period details are astonishing, the humor and one-liner's are brilliant, and the psychological journey is highly rewarding. I highly recommend this strange and stunning modern classic.
— Bonjour Tristesse
11 comments:
Thanks yeah I do recommend checking it out.
Sad to hear about the demise of your small theaters. I'm lucky to have a few left around here, and even one of the big multiplexes downtown often play these types of films.
Yeah for my money, he is one of the most interesting American directors working today.
William Blake finds a pistol under Thel Russell's pillow.
Thel: Oh, watch it it's loaded.
William: Why do you have this?
Thel: Cuz this is America.
Now this I have to see! Excellent review and evoking images! Stop by my blog some time.
I saw this movie quite by accident when it was first released, didn't even know what it was about. We used to have many small movie theaters at the time that showed interesting films. (Most gone now replaced by the multiplex). I actually liked it even in its strangeness and think it is one of Depp's most interesting films.
I am a huge fan of Jim Jarmusch, particularly his early films. His movie Stranger than Paradise is one of my ten favourite movies of all time. Not a huge fan of Dead Man, though.
I'll be in it for the humour and one-liners.
I wasn't really old enough to care about or appreciate this movie when it came out. Think it's time to give it a watch.
Welcome Anthony, and thanks for the comment! This is a sadly underrated film.
Underrated film, one of Depp's (and Jarmusch's) best. Nice to see it getting some love. Only just discovered your blog... Great stuff!
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