The Criterion Collection

[Purplenoon]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

William Blake, a mild-mannered accountant played by Johnny Depp, travels on a westbound train from Cleveland to the rough-and-tumble industrial frontier town of Machine, where he kills a man after being unwittingly drawn into a love triangle. Now a wounded outlaw with a price on his head, he finds himself in the unforgiving wilderness, pursued by a sadistic gun-for-hire, played by Lance Henriksen, and two other bounty hunters. With the help of a Native American loner, played by Gary Farmer, Blake journeys though a desolate and surreal landscape, leaving a trail of corpses as he edges closer to his ultimate destination.

The 1995 cult western, Dead Man, is the sixth feature-length directorial effort from Jim Jarmusch, whose leisurely-paced predecessors, Permanent Vacation (1980), Stranger Than Paradise (1984), Down by Law (1986), Mystery Train (1989), and Night on Earth (1991), made waves in the independent filmmaking community because of their laconic approach to storytelling. For this outing, the first period piece from the director, he utilizes a similarly sparse narrative, but mixes his offbeat brand of humor with an intensely bleak fatalism that recalls the tone of Cormac McCarthy’s 1985 novel, Blood Meridian or the Evening Redness in the West. In terms of its place in the western genre of cinema, it conjures comparisons to Monte Hellman’s two 1966 minimalist masterworks, The Shooting and Ride in the Whirlwind, but its stunning black-and-white cinematography, courtesy of Robby Müller, who previously collaborated with Jarmusch and who is best known for his visual styles in Repo Man and Paris, Texas, takes starkness to new extremes. The improvised guitar music from Neil Young, complete with angular bursts of sound, contributes an additional undertone of violence, since it does not score the movie so much as it stabs it with blunt knives.

This strange endeavor, while more accessible than Jarmusch’s previous works, received a lukewarm reception upon its theatrical release, but it has since grown in stature. Its languid style is no easier to swallow than it was two decades ago, but its overt “journey to Machine” metaphors about the toll that increased industry has inflicted on our perception of the value of life is all the more resonant in today’s age of smartphones and social media.

Dead Man was one of the final movie appearances by screen legend Robert Mitchum, whose role as a doomed figure in the 1947 film noir, Out of the Past, practically serves as a rough blueprint for the descent taken by Depp’s lead antihero. Be on the lookout as well for the likes of John Hurt, Billy Bob Thornton, Iggy Pop, Crispin Glover, Alfred Molina, and Gabriel Byrne. Mili Avital, as a flower girl, only has a few moments of screen time, but her presence sets the aesthetic for the concept of beauty’s demise in a world of lawlessness.

This Criterion does right by the film’s mix of ethereal splendor and worldly ugliness with a marvelous technical presentation. I did not get a chance to go through all of the extras last night, so I will be finishing them this week. I am expecting great things from the Jarmusch Q&A.

Just curious, did you like this movie? Would you recommend it?

[javy]

I watched The Breakfast Club for the first time. I liked it, it's a cool film. One thing though- Nelson spitting that loogie up in the air and then catching with his mouth. Who the f does that? Gross.

[gbm82]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

William Blake, a mild-mannered accountant played by Johnny Depp, travels on a westbound train from Cleveland to the rough-and-tumble industrial frontier town of Machine, where he kills a man after being unwittingly drawn into a love triangle. Now a wounded outlaw with a price on his head, he finds himself in the unforgiving wilderness, pursued by a sadistic gun-for-hire, played by Lance Henriksen, and two other bounty hunters. With the help of a Native American loner, played by Gary Farmer, Blake journeys though a desolate and surreal landscape, leaving a trail of corpses as he edges closer to his ultimate destination.

The 1995 cult western, Dead Man, is the sixth feature-length directorial effort from Jim Jarmusch, whose leisurely-paced predecessors, Permanent Vacation (1980), Stranger Than Paradise (1984), Down by Law (1986), Mystery Train (1989), and Night on Earth (1991), made waves in the independent filmmaking community because of their laconic approach to storytelling. For this outing, the first period piece from the director, he utilizes a similarly sparse narrative, but mixes his offbeat brand of humor with an intensely bleak fatalism that recalls the tone of Cormac McCarthy’s 1985 novel, Blood Meridian or the Evening Redness in the West. In terms of its place in the western genre of cinema, it conjures comparisons to Monte Hellman’s two 1966 minimalist masterworks, The Shooting and Ride in the Whirlwind, but its stunning black-and-white cinematography, courtesy of Robby Müller, who previously collaborated with Jarmusch and who is best known for his visual styles in Repo Man and Paris, Texas, takes starkness to new extremes. The improvised guitar music from Neil Young, complete with angular bursts of sound, contributes an additional undertone of violence, since it does not score the movie so much as it stabs it with blunt knives.

This strange endeavor, while more accessible than Jarmusch’s previous works, received a lukewarm reception upon its theatrical release, but it has since grown in stature. Its languid style is no easier to swallow than it was two decades ago, but its overt “journey to Machine” metaphors about the toll that increased industry has inflicted on our perception of the value of life is all the more resonant in today’s age of smartphones and social media.

Dead Man was one of the final movie appearances by screen legend Robert Mitchum, whose role as a doomed figure in the 1947 film noir, Out of the Past, practically serves as a rough blueprint for the descent taken by Depp’s lead antihero. Be on the lookout as well for the likes of John Hurt, Billy Bob Thornton, Iggy Pop, Crispin Glover, Alfred Molina, and Gabriel Byrne. Mili Avital, as a flower girl, only has a few moments of screen time, but her presence sets the aesthetic for the concept of beauty’s demise in a world of lawlessness.

This Criterion does right by the film’s mix of ethereal splendor and worldly ugliness with a marvelous technical presentation. I did not get a chance to go through all of the extras last night, so I will be finishing them this week. I am expecting great things from the Jarmusch Q&A.

Robby Muller may be one of the best arguments against the auteur theory..


edit: and those Hellman films have been on my radar for a minute, especially since I loved Two-Lane Blacktop. Maybe I'm not sitting out this B&N sale afterall

[gbm82]

Originally Posted by Purplenoon

Just curious, did you like this movie? Would you recommend it?

If you can handle the languid pace it's an absolutely fantastic film...

[jw007]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Thus concludes my trip through the Jim Jarmusch films in the Criterion Collection.

I saw The Dead Don’t Die at the theater last week, and that lit a fire under my tail to revisit his earlier works for the first time in ages. I would urge others to do the same as well, since his new film has several treats for those who are familiar with his early stuff.

The Kino Lorber Blu-ray of Broken Flowers should be arriving at my doorstep soon. I also need to check out Only Lovers Left Alive.

You will love Only Lovers Left Alive, as I still feel its his finest movie since Ghost Dog. Thank you so much for the Jarmusch reviews, as he's one of my favorite directors and a big reason why I got into collecting Criterions in the first place (starting with my first ever Criterion of Fishing With John).

The Dead Don't Die was a lovely film. I laughed nonstop in the theater with my friend because it was just so hilarious (I mean, what's up with Adam Driver and Bill Murray mentioning Jim Jarmusch in that one scene in the film?! Was that an outtake they used in the movie?). I MEAN, WOW!

By the way, I know a guy who acquired the brown couch from Broken Flowers and I ended up sleeping on it several times in his Brooklyn underground apartment. I gotta say, the memories of Bill Murray "rubbed" out on me (no pun intended).

[ShellOilJunior]

The Bergman set was announced on July 12, 2018. A big box set for #1000 (Kurosawa?) would presumably get its own announcement day.

[dwk]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

The Bergman set was announced on July 12, 2018. A big box set for #1000 (Kurosawa?) would presumably get its own announcement day.

The Olympics box set (spine #900) was also announced by itself, on an off day (August 10, 2017.) Both those off day announcements dates were the 2nd Thursday of the month. So, if Criterion is going to do a special announcement for #1000, it'll be on the 11th of July.

[Xtempo]

I watched a DVD of Fantastic Mr. Fox not the Criterion edition. I absolutely hated it. The cast was perfect but I'm thinking I just hate Wes Anderson. I mean at first I like Bottle Rocket but after another viewing I hated it. I love Dahl though. My favorite book was the BFG.

[Kyle15]

Originally Posted by Xtempo

I watched a DVD of Fantastic Mr. Fox not the Criterion edition. I absolutely hated it. The cast was perfect but I'm thinking I just hate Wes Anderson. I mean at first I like Bottle Rocket but after another viewing I hated it. I love Dahl though. My favorite book was the BFG.

Mr. Fox is a wonderful filum, don't make me cuss at you

[Dailyan]

Originally Posted by Kyle15

Mr. Fox is a wonderful filum, don't make me cuss at you

It's probably my least favorite Anderson. I still enjoy it but I just wasn't a big fan of the changes from the source material (especially the ending/third act).

[Xtempo]

Originally Posted by Kyle15

Mr. Fox is a wonderful filum, don't make me cuss at you

that is one of things that annoyed me the most. I mean it wasn't funny and was grating on my nerves. I don't want them to cuss but the mere mention of it was completely stupid and annoying.

[GRD43L]

I realize Bondarchuk's W&P will be released next week (pre-ordered & so looking forward to watching it) but King Vidor's War & Peace is going to be available for streaming?

Vidor's version did serve to kick start Bondarchuk's version but Vidor's execution is awful.

[GRD43L]

Originally Posted by Kyle15

Mr. Fox is a wonderful filum, don't make me cuss at you

Hot box!!!

FMF is a delightful film.

Aaaarrrrrgggghhhh!
Aaaarrrrrgggghhhh!
Aaaarrrrrgggghhhh!
Hhhhhsssss!

and that's all I have to say about that.

[Mister_Kidd]

It's better than Isle of Dogs.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by Xtempo

I watched a DVD of Fantastic Mr. Fox not the Criterion edition. I absolutely hated it. The cast was perfect but I'm thinking I just hate Wes Anderson. I mean at first I like Bottle Rocket but after another viewing I hated it. I love Dahl though. My favorite book was the BFG.

Is there any reason in particular you went from liking Bottle Rocket to hating it by your second viewing?

I will say that Wes Anderson is one of the more polarizing directors out there. People either seem to love his films, or hate them. I personally enjoy all of them, and find them to be pretty funny, and creatively put together.

I'd suggest you watch a couple more of his films, and see whether you like his style or not. I wouldn't really say Bottle Rocket is that typical of his other films. I'd suggest The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Rushmore.

[Xtempo]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Is there any reason in particular you went from liking Bottle Rocket to hating it by your second viewing?

I will say that Wes Anderson is one of the more polarizing directors out there. People either seem to love his films, or hate them. I personally enjoy all of them, and find them to be pretty funny, and creatively put together.

I'd suggest you watch a couple more of his films, and see whether you like his style or not. I wouldn't really say Bottle Rocket is that typical of his other films. I'd suggest The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Rushmore.

I suppose the first time because it was new and fresh to me but watching it the second I wasn't really captivated as I once was.

EDIT: The only one so far I really love is Isle of Dogs but I'll try more of his.

[Cremildo]

Originally Posted by Mister_Kidd

It's better than Isle of Dogs.

Better than his best film? Nope!

[Mister_Kidd]

Originally Posted by Cremildo

Better than his best film? Nope!

I’m new around here, is that a commonly held opinion? I strongly disagree. I’d take pretty much everything except Darjeeling over Isle of Dogs. I’ve only seen it once, so maybe I’m due for a rewatch.

[Dailyan]

Originally Posted by Cremildo

Better than his best film? Nope!

Originally Posted by Mister_Kidd

I’m new around here, is that a commonly held opinion? I strongly disagree. I’d take pretty much everything except Darjeeling over Isle of Dogs. I’ve only seen it once, so maybe I’m due for a rewatch.

I'll gladly take "The Darjeeling Limited" any day.

[Reddington]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

[Show spoiler]Is there any reason in particular you went from liking Bottle Rocket to hating it by your second viewing?

I will say that Wes Anderson is one of the more polarizing directors out there. People either seem to love his films, or hate them. I personally enjoy all of them, and find them to be pretty funny, and creatively put together.

I'd suggest you watch a couple more of his films, and see whether you like his style or not. I wouldn't really say Bottle Rocket is that typical of his other films. I'd suggest The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Rushmore.

I try to stay positive in these threads, but I have to say that after watching The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - which I thought was abysmal - I was hardly inclined to check out any of his other efforts.