Down by Law

Written and directed by Jim Jarmusch, Down by Law is the story of three men who are incarcerated at a Louisiana prison as they decide to work together to make an escape. The film is an exploration into the lives of three different men who are accused of different crimes where they rely on each other to deal with their situation. Starring Roberto Benigni, Tom Waits, and John Lurie. Down by Law is a captivating yet visually-entrancing film from Jim Jarmusch.

The film is the simple story of three different men who find themselves in trouble in different circumstances as they’re sent to a prison in Louisiana where they later escape as they try to evade the authorities through its swamp. Yet, these are three men who don’t know each other as they have to work together despite their differences. Two of which in an unemployed radio DJ named Zack (Tom Waits) and a small-time pimp named Jack (John Lurie) are both sent to prison for something they didn’t do as they were set up. Joining them is this Italian immigrant named Bob (Roberto Benigni) who is arrested for manslaughter as he would be the one to lead the escape despite his poor English.

Jim Jarmusch’s screenplay has a unique structure in the way he sets up the story as the first act is about Jack and Zack dealing with their issues in New Orleans where they’re both set up as Zack has a brief encounter with Bob. The second act is about the three men sharing a prison cell in Louisiana as Zack and Jack don’t really like each other as Bob is the wild card who did kill someone but only by accident. The third act is about the three men escaping prison yet they have to encounter something far more terrifying which is the Louisiana swamp where they have no idea where to go and such.

Jarmusch’s direction is very evocative in the way he presents the film as he makes the Louisiana bayou, its small towns, and the city of New Orleans just as important as the characters in the film. Most notably as he aims for something that feels like a mixture of Americana with a European sensibility in the compositions he creates that are simple but also offbeat. Particularly as he maintains an intimacy in the scenes set in the prison cell where it’s a bit claustrophobic but also lively such as a moment where the three men scream “I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream” that led the other inmate to do the same. It all plays to that sense that something is going to happen where it would play into their escape from prison.

Much of the scenes set in New Orleans and the Louisiana swamp are much broader in scope with Jarmusch using a lot of medium and some wide shots to create some unique images for the former in the film’s first act. The film’s third act in the swamp are definitely the most entrancing portions of the film where the sense of location adds to an element of suspense in Jarmusch’s direction where the swamp turns out to be something far more menacing because it has that sense of the unknown. Yet, there is some humor that is still prevalent in the form of Bob where he would be the one to find some hope as well as a fitting resolution. Overall, Jarmusch crafts a very engaging and compelling film about three different men who are bounded together by prison as they make a grand escape.

Cinematographer Robby Muller does phenomenal work with the film‘s black-and-white photography to play into the desolate yet vibrant look of New Orleans along with the more ethereal images that he creates with his camera for the scenes set in the swamp as he is one of the film‘s major highlights. Editor Melody London does excellent work with the film‘s editing by aiming for some style with its jump-cuts and transitional cuts to play into the film‘s unique structure as well as its suspense and humor. Set decorator Janet Densmore does fantastic work with some of the film’s minimal set pieces such as the prison cell the three men stay in as well as the shack they find in the middle of the swamp.

Costume designer Carol Wood does nice work with the costumes as it‘s mostly casual including the prison suit’s the three men have to wear. Sound editor John Auerbach does terrific work with the sound to play into the atmosphere of the prison as well as the low-key sounds for the scenes in the swamp. The film’s music by John Lurie is amazing for its low-key yet playful jazz-based score to play into the film’s humor while the film also includes a couple of original songs by Tom Waits that helps with the film’s humor as well as a rendition of Naomi Neville’s It’s Raining by Irma Thomas that adds a key moment to one of the film’s final scenes.

The film’s brilliant cast includes some notable appearances from Billie Neal as one of Jack’s frustrated hookers, Ellen Barkin as Zack’s frustrated and angry girlfriend, and Nicoletta Braschi as an Italian woman that Bob meets late in the film. Robert Benigni is great as the very comical Bob as an Italian immigrant who speaks little English as he tries to find ways to get the spirits going and urge Jack and Zack to escape. John Lurie is superb as Jack as this small-time pimp who is upset over what happened as he tries to figure out what he’ll do once he gets out. Tom Waits is marvelous as Zack as an unemployed radio DJ who tries to figure out how to deal with his time while realizing how troubled the swamp is. Benigni, Lurie, and Waits make one incredible trio in the way they interact together as they are one of the reason for the film’s greatness.

Down by Law is a remarkable film from Jim Jarmusch. Thanks to the fantastic trio of Roberto Benigni, John Lurie, and Tom Waits as well as Robby Muller’s beautiful cinematography. The film is definitely a unique take on the prison escape movie where it focuses on the individuals instead of the plot to escape and such. Even as Jarmusch infuses it with some low-key humor and offbeat situations to make it so much more as it defies convention. In the end, Down by Law is a sensational film from Jim Jarmusch.

Jim Jarmusch Films: Permanent Vacation - Stranger than Paradise - Mystery Train - Night on Earth - Dead Man - Year of the Horse - Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai - Coffee & Cigarettes - Broken Flowers - The Limits of Control - Only Lovers Left Alive - Paterson - Gimme Danger - The Dead Don’t Die - (Father Mother Sister Brother) - The Auteurs #27: Jim Jarmusch

© thevoid99 2013

To Rome with Love

Written, directed, and starring Woody Allen, To Rome with Love is a multi-layered film with four different stories about people living or vacationing in Rome, Italy. Among these stories include a funeral director who unknowingly has singing talent, a man who becomes a celebrity for mysterious reasons, a couple on their honeymoon, and an architect who guides a young man into the world of love. All of which play into the fascination of the city. Also starring Alec Baldwin, Jesse Eisenberg, Ellen Page, Greta Gerwig, Judy Davis, Roberto Benigni, Alison Pill, Ornella Muti, and Penelope Cruz. To Rome with Love is an interesting but very lackluster film from Woody Allen.

The film revolves around four different stories all set in the city of Rome as it plays to the desires of various people and how it can be a bit overwhelming as well as the realization that not everything is as it’s cracked up to be. One story involves a revered architect (Alec Baldwin) who meets a young man (Jesse Eisenberg) who is living in the old apartment the architect lived as a student as he observes the young man’s obsession with a neurotic actress (Ellen Page). The second story is about an American woman who meets and falls for an Italian man as they announced their engagement where the woman’s father learns that his future son-in-law’s father has a gift for singing opera. The third story revolves around an ordinary business clerk (Roberto Benigni) who suddenly becomes a celebrity as he’s baffled by his new fame. The fourth and final story is about a couple who come to Rome for their honeymoon where the bride is suddenly lost in the city forcing the groom to hire a hooker (Penelope Cruz) to pretend to be his wife for his relatives.

While Woody Allen creates a very interesting concept that revolves around these four different stories that sort of cross-cuts from one another. The result as a whole is very messy. There’s parts in some of these stories that are funny and exciting but there’s also moments where it kind of drags and such that sort of loses steam. The story about the funeral director who only sings in the shower is quite interesting as it has a lot of humor which includes Allen playing the American girl’s father but the humor loses steam late in the story. The story about the architect guiding this young man about his love life is very troubled due to the writing where it becomes unclear where the architect is real or he’s just acting as a Greek chorus.

The story about this business clerk’s sudden new fame is also funny but it gets ridiculous as it goes on where some of the humor is forced. The segment about the newlywed couple who each venture into different journeys in Rome where the groom unexpectedly has a hooker hang out with his rich relatives while the bride spends time with a film actor is definitely the best of the four. All of these all play into people being fascinated by the riches and cultures of Rome yet it would all play to the idea that not everyone can endure all of these wonders as some just prefer something much simpler.

Allen’s direction is quite unique in the way he presents Rome as he makes it a major character in the film. Yet, it starts off with a very beautiful montage of cars driving through the streets of Rome where the camera stops on this traffic policeman (Pierluigi Marchionne) who comments about the wonders of Rome. Allen does create some dazzling compositions that plays to the beauty of the city as well as some moments where he wanted to keep things naturally funny. Yet, the script’s drawbacks does drag the story where Allen has a hard time keeping up with the momentum of some of the humor where some of it feels forced and unfocused. While the segment about the funeral director who can sing opera has some very spectacular moments including the staging of his operas where sings in a shower. It doesn’t do enough to make the film more engaging than it needs to be despite some of the moments in the newlywed couple segment. Overall Allen creates a very incoherent and underwhelming film about life in Rome.

Cinematographer Darius Khondji does brilliant work with the film‘s cinematography as it is filled with some gorgeous images of the city in the day and night as well as some of the nighttime interior scenes. Editor Alisa Lepselter does nice work with the editing in creating some lively montages while playing up to the film‘s unique narrative structure with some very inspired transitions. Production designer Anne Seibel, with set decorator Raffaella Giovannetti and art director Luca Trachino, does excellent work with the set pieces from the hotels and homes the characters stay at to the staging of the operas.

Costume designer Sonia Grande does terrific work with the costumes as it‘s mostly casual with the exception of the red dress Cruz‘s hooker character wears. Sound editor Robert Hein does superb work with the sound to play up some of the atmosphere of the locations including the sound of the funeral director singing in the shower at his home. The film’s wonderful soundtrack is filled with a lot of different blend of music ranging from jazz, classical, opera, and some Italian pop tunes that include various renditions of Volare.

The casting by Juliet Taylor, Patricia Kerrigan DiCerto, and Beatrice Kruger is amazing for the ensemble that is created for this film as it includes some small appearances from Riccardo Scamarcio as a hotel thief who tries to rob a movie star, Ornella Muti as a famous Italian actress, Antonio Albanese as the revered actor Luca whom the newlywed bride Milly is charmed by, Cecilia Capriotti as a sexy secretary who sleeps with Leopoldo over his fame, Monica Nappo as Leopoldo’s very simple wife, Lino Guanciale as a man Jack tries to set Monica up that would fuel his jealousy, famed Roman newscaster Cristiana Palazzoni as herself, and Pierluigi Marchionne playing himself as a charming traffic policeman. In the singing funeral director segment, Fabio Armiliato is great as Giancarlo as a simple funeral director with a great tenor voice who is reluctant to become an opera singer.

Flavio Parenti is terrific as Giancarlo’s son Michelangelo as is Alison Pill as Michelangelo’s American fiancee Hayley who tries to defend her father for what he wants to do. Judy Davis is pretty good as Hayley’s mother despite the fact that her character doesn’t get to do much while Woody Allen is funny as Hayley’s father who tries to launch Giancarlo’s career much to the chagrin of Michelangelo. Alec Baldwin is excellent as the revered architect who observes Jack’s fascination with Monica while giving Jack advice on what not to do. Jesse Eisenberg is quite fine as Jack as a young architect who falls for Monica. Greta Gerwig is alright as Jack’s girlfriend Sally though is quite underused while Ellen Page has her moments as Monica though the script doesn’t allow her to make her character more interesting as she’s just this neurotic actress who is kind of a poser.

Roberto Benigni is superb as a clerk who deals with his newfound celebrity where Benigni brings a lot of humor to his role as a man baffled by this new sense of fame. Alessandro Tiberi and Alessandra Mastronardi are wonderful as the newlywed couple Antonio and Milly who both take on unexpected journeys into Rome. Finally, there’s Penelope Cruz in a remarkable performance as the prostitute Anna who pretends to be Antonio’s wife while giving him advice on love and such as it’s a very lively performance from Cruz.

To Rome with Love is a very messy and often incoherent film from Woody Allen despite the beauty of its location and some funny moments from some of its cast including Roberto Benigni and Penelope Cruz. While it is definitely a lesser film from Allen, there are moments that showcase that he still has a few things to say no matter how overbearing it can be. In the end, To Rome with Love is a disappointing film from Woody Allen.

Woody Allen Films: What's Up Tiger Lily? - Take the Money and Run - Bananas - Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask) - Sleeper - Love and Death - Annie Hall - Interiors - Manhattan - Stardust Memories - A Midsummer's Night Sex Comedy - Zelig - Broadway Danny Rose - The Purple Rose of Cairo - Hannah & Her Sisters - Radio Days - September - Another Woman - New York Stories: Oedipus Wrecks - Crimes & Misdemeanors - Alice - Shadows and Fog - Husbands and Wives - Manhattan Murder Mystery - Bullets Over Broadway - Don't Drink the Water - Mighty Aphrodite - Everyone Says I Love You - Deconstructing Harry - Celebrity - Sweet and Lowdown - Small Time Crooks - The Curse of the Jade Scorpion - Hollywood Ending - Anything Else - Melinda & Melinda - Match Point - Scoop - Cassandra's Dream - Vicky Cristina Barcelona - Whatever Works - You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger - Midnight in Paris - Blue Jasmine - Magic in the Moonlight - Irrational Man - (Cafe Society)

The Auteurs #24: Woody Allen Pt. 1 - Pt. 2 - Pt. 3 - Pt. 4

© thevoid99 2013

Coffee and Cigarettes

Written and directed by Jim Jarmusch, Coffee and Cigarettes is a collection of 11 vignettes relating to people having conversations about anything while drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes. The film is a collection of 11 shorts, three of which were made prior in 2003 including the 1993 Somewhere in California segment that won Jarmusch the short film Palme D’or at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. With an all-start cast that includes Roberto Benigni, Steven Wright, Joie Lee, Cinque Lee, Steve Buscemi, Iggy Pop, Tom Waits, Cate Blanchett, Steve Coogan, Alfred Molina, Issach de Bankole, Jack & Meg White of the White Stripes, RZA & GZA of the Wu-Tang Clan, and Bill Murray. Coffee and Cigarettes is fun collection of shorts and vignettes from Jim Jarmusch.

In Strange to Meet You, Roberto Benigni and Steven Wright meet as Wright is nervous about a dentist appointment during a conversation about their love coffee and cigarettes. Twins is about twins (Joie Lee and Cinque Lee) drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes in Memphis as a waiter (Steve Buscemi) tells them his theories about Elvis Presley and his twin brother Jesse. Somewhere in California has Iggy Pop and Tom Waits have an awkward conversation as Waits claims he’s a doctor while Pop offers him a drummer he has just worked with. Those Things’ll Kill Ya has Joseph Rigano and Vinny Vella talking about their vices as Vinny’s son Vinny Jr. asks for money via sign language in an act of silence.

Renée has Renée French drinking coffee and looking at magazine while a waiter (E.J. Rodriguez) tries to serve her. No Problem is about two friends (Issach de Bankole and Alex Descas) talking as Issach keeps asking Alex questions about some issues. Cousins is about Cate Blanchett meeting her cousin Shelly (Cate Blanchett) at a hotel lounge where they talk about their lives as Shelly reveals she has a new boyfriend. Jack Shows Meg His Tesla Coil has Jack White showing Meg the Tesla Coil he had while talking about the brilliance of Nikola Tesla.

Cousins? has Alfred Molina and Steve Coogan having tea in Los Angeles talking about their career as Molina shows him something claiming he and Coogan are cousins. Delirium is about GZA and RZA talking about alternative medicines and the dangers of caffeine where Bill Murray appears drinking a mug of coffee. Champagne is about two old men (William “Bill” Rice and Taylor Mead) talking about nostalgia as the music of Mahler.

The concept of the film is about two or three people having conversations about practically anything while drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes. Throughout each segment, there is a looseness to the story as many of the conversations are improvised where people talk about many things throughout. Whether its about music, art, coffee, cigarettes, Nikola Tesla, anything, or maybe nothing at all. The idea of drinking coffee and having a smoke is something intriguing to Jim Jarmusch throughout many of these shorts that have been created from 1986 through 2003.

Through each short as they’re all presented in black and white with varying running times, Jarmusch is able to keep the camera still and often shooting the coffee and cigarettes. At the same time, he repeats a few motifs and dialogues to keep the all the shorts connected in one way or another. While a lot of the shorts work and a couple like Renée and Champagne don’t work entirely, Jarmusch does create what is certainly a fascinating film.

Helping Jarmusch with his vision are a team of cinematographers, editors, and production designers that get involved in the film throughout the years. With Frederick Elmes shooting a large portion of the material while Tom Di Cillo does Strange to Meet You, Robby Mueller on Twins, and Ellen Kuras for Renée and No Problem. The cinematography from the early parts have a grainy look while it becomes a bit more refined to complement the atmosphere of each section. Editor Jay Rabinowitz doing a lot of the segments while Jim Jarmusch and Terry Katz did Somewhere in California and Melody London doing Twins and Strange to Meet You. The editing is very tight and rhythmic to capture a lot of the conversations while Renée and Champagne kind of meanders a bit.

Mark Friedberg and Tom Jarmusch do a lot of the production design of the film to help set the mood for each segment that is happening while Dan Bishop does the Twins segment. For the sound work, longtime Jarmusch collaborator Anthony J. Ciccolini III does a lot of the sound work and mixing for all of the segments including the remixing for the older segments. The soundtrack is a mixture of music that is played the background though the film opens and closes with Louie, Louie by Richard Berry opening the film and Iggy Pop’s cover closing the film. The rest of the soundtrack includes pieces by Tom Waits, Jerry Byrd, the Stooges, Tommy James & the Shondells, the Skatalites, Funkadelic, and Gustav Mahler.

The cast is truly phenomenal as there’s a wonderful array of performers many of whom are playing themselves or exaggerations of themselves. Notable standouts include Bill Murray, RZA, and GZA in Delirium, Steve Buscemi in Twins, Steven Wright and Robert Benigni in Strange to Meet You, Steve Coogan and Alfred Molina in Cousins?, Iggy Pop and Tom Waits in Somewhere in California, and the White Stripes in Jack Shows Meg His Tesla Coil that features a cameo from Cinque Lee. The best performance easily goes to Cate Blanchett in the Cousins segment as she plays herself and her cooler cousin with long black hair and stylish clothes as it’s a funny, remarkable performance.

Coffee and Cigarettes is an entertaining yet captivating film from Jim Jarmusch. While it may not reach the heights of great films like Mystery Train and Night on Earth as a whole. Some of the vignettes do stand out as great little mini-masterpieces of Jarmusch as a filmmaker who likes to keep things simple and to the point. It’s a film that fans of his work will enjoy where they to get to revisit the older shorts and see some new ones. In the end, Coffee and Cigarettes is a stylish yet enjoyable film from Jim Jarmusch.

Jim Jarmusch Films: Permanent Vacation - Stranger Than Paradise - Down By Law - Mystery Train - Night on Earth - Dead Man - Year of the Horse - Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai - Broken Flowers - The Limits of Control - Only Lovers Left Alive - Paterson - Gimme Danger - The Dead Don’t Die - (Father Mother Sister Brother) - The Auteurs #27: Jim Jarmusch

© thevoid99 2011

Night on Earth

Written and directed by Jim Jarmusch, Night on Earth is a collection of five stories set in five different cities all over the world where a taxi driver and a passenger would engage in various conversations during their brief time together. The film has Jarmusch going into various places with different actors in each city to explore the dynamic between passenger and driver. With an all-star cast that includes Winona Ryder, Gena Rowlands, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Giancarlo Esposito, Rosie Perez, Issach de Bankole, Beatrice Dalle, Roberto Benigni, Paolo Bonacelli, and Matti Pellonpaa. Night on Earth is an extraordinary yet hypnotic film from Jim Jarmusch.

In Los Angeles, tomboy cab driver Corky (Winona Ryder) picks up the rich casting agent Victoria Snelling (Gena Rowlands) at an airport on their way to Beverly Hills. During the ride, the two women discuss the fallacies of men and their differences as Victoria reveals to have night blindness while Corky aspires to be a mechanic. In New York City, a man named YoYo (Giancarlo Espositio) is trying to get a ride to Brooklyn as he gets a cab driver in an East German circus clown named Helmut Grokenberger (Armin Mueller-Stahl). Unfortunately, it’s Helmut’s first day as he doesn’t know the city nor how to drive as YoYo takes over where the two talk while picking up YoYo’s brash sister-in-law Angela (Rosie Perez).

It’s late at night in Paris as a frustrated cab driver (Issach de Bankole) had just been dealing with a couple of awful passengers (Pascal N’Zonzi and Emile Abossolo M‘bo) as he takes a blind woman (Beatrice Dalle). During the ride, the driver is fascinated by the blind woman as she reveals that she can still do things despite her blindness. In Rome, the talkative Gino (Roberto Benigni) wears sunglasses during the late night as he picks up an ailing priest (Paolo Bonacelli). During the ride, Gino reveals his many sins which overwhelms the priest. In Helsinki, Mika (Matti Pellonpaa) picks up three passengers (Kari Vaananen, Sakari Kuosmanen, and Tomi Salmela) where one of them has just had the worst day of life as Mika tells them a story that moves the two awake passengers.

The idea of a taxi as far as a driver and passenger is concerned is this. Driver takes the passenger on a ride. Passenger tells the driver to its desired location. Driver does that and once the destination is reached, driver gets paid and the passenger is at its desired location. Yet in a world as glorious as this, a simple cab drive could be something more as Jim Jarmusch creates five different stories in five different worlds with several different people in different situations. All in different races, nationalities, age groups, and personalities as Jarmusch creates something is truly engaging in the stories that are told.

In each segment of the film, there is something happening between passenger and driver where they all get something out of this little moment in their lives. For the L.A. segment, two different women bond over their frustration towards men along with their different lifestyles. In the NYC segment, an East-German man becomes fascinated by the city and the two people he meets as it’s a great sense of discovery on his first day as a taxi driver. In Paris, a man from the Ivory Coast is fascinated by this blind woman as he seems uninterested in what he’s doing. The segment in Rome has a very talkative man who drives very fast as he ends up overwhelming an ill priest that is strange dark comedy as it’s one of the strangest. The last segment in Helsinki has a driver taking in three passengers where he reveals to them a sad story that reveals that there’s always something worse from happening.

The script that Jarmusch creates is very loose as each segment is given enough time to develop the relationships and the stories told in these segments. In his direction, Jarmusch goes for the same kind of compositions of each segment to capture the driver and passengers with the camera always in front of the car. Yet, he also brings something different to the look and tone of each segment as some are light-hearted while some can seem grim and entrancing. Jarmusch keeps each segment and fresh so each can bring something different to the table. The film and each segment is preceded with a shot of five clocks where the camera zooms towards the clock with the city’s name above and a globe to reveal where what city is to be told.

Throughout the entirety of the film, each segment opens with a look of the city at night in a montage and a cab to introduce the driver, with the exception of the NYC segment, for each segment. During the entirety of the segments, shots of the cities at night are taken place to reveal what locations the driver and passengers are at. The overall approach to Jarmusch’s direction is very stylish yet intimate portrait of an entire night on earth in five different cities with different people musing about the world around them. What Jarmusch creates is a truly exciting and entertaining film that is unconventional yet engrossing in its simplicity.

Cinematographer Frederick Elmes does a wonderful job with the film‘s colorful cinematography from the evening look early in the Los Angeles airport scene to the colorful lights in New York and Los Angeles. Elmes’ work adds a wonderful beauty to the cities with blue lights for the Paris and Helsinki scenes to more intimate settings for the scenes in Rome. Editor Jay Rabinowitz does a great job with creating some stylish cuts for the film while maintaining a fascinating rhythm for many of the conversation scenes that occur in the film. Rabinowitz also keeps a tight pace for each segment at around 20-25 minutes in total to bring enough moments for each story.

Sound designer Anthony J. Ciccolini III does an excellent job with the sound to capture the differing atmospheres of each city along with the intimacy of the cab conversations between the characters in the film. The film’s music by Tom Waits is superb as it is a wonderful mix of jazz and folk that includes different instruments to play to each city. Featuring a few songs written by Waits and wife Kathleen Brennan, Waits score is definitely a highlight of the film as the rest of the soundtrack includes additional music pieces from Davie Allan and Blue Cheer for the L.A. segment.

The big ensemble cast is truly magnificent as each segment provides something different for the film. In very small roles include Lisanne Falk as a manager for band that Corky had brought in the L.A. segment while Pascal N’Zonzi and Emile Abossolo M‘bo are good as the two passengers who annoy the driver in the Paris segment. In the Helsinki scenes, Tomi Salmela is good as the drunk passenger who is passed out while Kari Vaananen and Sakari Kuosmanen are excellent as the other passengers who starts to befriend the cab driver Mika following his story. Matti Pellonpaa is amazing as Mika, the Helsinki cab driver who maintains a stoic approach to his performance as he holds his emotions together during the drive. Paolo Bonacelli is wonderful as the ailing priest who is forced to listen to his driver’s confessions while Roberto Benigni is hilarious as the talkative Gino whose confessed sins prove to be too much in an otherwise dark but funny segment.

Beatrice Dalle is brilliant as the blind passenger who can feel things around her despite her blindness while Issach de Bankole is superb as the quiet driver who is fascinated by the presence of his blind passenger. Rosie Perez is very funny as the brash Angela who spouts all sorts of profanities towards her brother-in-law while being a bit nice towards Helmut. Giancarlo Esposito is also funny but charming as YoYo who tries to help Helmut about being a cab driver and showing him New York City while Armin Mueller-Stahl is phenomenal as the East German cab driver on his first day in amazement on the world around him. Winona Ryder and Gena Rowlands are spectacular as the two different women in L.A. who share their disgust about men while bonding over their differences in low-key but fun performances.

Night on Earth is a fascinating yet magical film from Jim Jarmusch. Armed with a diverse yet exhilarating ensemble cast of actors and in five different locations. It’s a film that truly chronicles the idea of how big the world is and despite the different nationalities, races, genders, and personalities shown in the film. These characters all will have a brief experience that is profound in a world as vast as this one. In the end, Jim Jarmusch creates a lively yet exciting film with Night on Earth.

Jim Jarmusch Films: Permanent Vacation - Stranger Than Paradise - Down By Law - Mystery Train - Dead Man - Year of the Horse - Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai - Coffee and Cigarettes - Broken Flowers - The Limits of Control - Only Lovers Left Alive - Paterson - Gimme Danger - The Dead Don’t Die - (Father Mother Sister Brother) - The Auteurs #27: Jim Jarmusch

© thevoid99 2011