ExploringFilm

I really liked this film - and in typical Jim Jarmusch style - you are not going to be treated to conflict, intense drama or larger than life characters; rather it is the internal, the small things, the thoughts and moods of an introverted man. This type of filmmaking is sorely lacking these days, and is where film as a more poetic medium seldom actualy shines.

Adam Driver plays an amateur poet who works as a bus driver for a living. The work also feeds back into his work, and conversations and encounters he makes during his everyday life serves as inspiration for his poetry. His girlfriend also is of the creative hobby artist kind, but with new projects every week, and an obsession with black and white. Its an acute and realistic observation, I know many of the scatterbrained type well - although this does not really serve as a source of conflict in their relationship, and they share a sort of love, if somewhat distant to each other's thoughts, as both lost in their own creative worlds. Again, this is another fairly acute representation of the reality of a creative couple, where each part pursue their own dream but share rituals such as meals, waking up, breakfasts.

Adam's desire to write poetry isn't really touched on. He simply writes a lot, if as a result, he becomes a little distanced to his own world. Personally, I have grown weary of the 'crazy artist genius' stereotype in films, but Adam plays his part subdued and straight-faced. Like in most Jarmusch's films, the dialogue is simple, not complex and baroque, and Adam's makes up for a lot of the emotion that the dialogue is missing. An observer of daily life, he sometimes evesdrops to conversations in a bar, interestingly most of the people he observes are black. Interestingly, the biggest drama that happens in the film is with him as an onlooker, concering a case of unrequited love in a black couple. Although his girlfriend is obsessed with black and white, I don't think Jarmusch is making a racial analogy here, rather it serves as a metaphor for Adam's duality. It also separates him visually from his world, as he as a white man often has the role of an observer of black people.

The poetry is presented as text on the screen, and over a series of 'fading montages' that stand out from the rest of the film. The imagery of water shows that his mind is flowing, in motion, and connecting to other parts of the world outside of his everyday world. In the end he is treated to a revelation that I would like to speculate, will only improve his writing. Inspired by real-life William Carlos Williams, a poet of Patterson city, it is an interesting addition to the film. Personally, I find this type of poetry a little prosaic perhaps, but poetry is a written, internal format these days, so it serves well as text on the screen. Also a recurring theme is the appearance of twins in the cast, without a specific relevance to the story. This symbolism serves into making the film a piece of 'hyperreality', or 'poetic reality' as opposed to the more straight-laced kitchen-sink social reality.

8/10 from me, some of the scenes felt a little flat or perhaps a little too metaphorical (such as the end scene with the Japaneese man) and overly ponderous. The relationships in the movie could perhaps have been better explored, but I realize Jarmusch's style of filmmaking is much more mood-focused, and also, if you are looking for a type of film you can watch and experience little poignant moments instead of car explisions, this is for you.

This is not a horror show. Why is this getting such high reviews? I love horror but this is a melodrama with a few horror jump scares. And that's it. The writing is overly expositional and the acting is stiff and awkward. The editing is extremely confusing at times and the logic is sometimes inconsistent. But above all, the characters are incredibly dour and dull. Its like watching 6 feet under without irony or wit.