Ghost Dog, la voie du samouraï

Ghost Dog is an excellent ode to Hip-Hop and samurai movies, molded into a framework of European film making. It is a meditation on philosophy, literature, the banality of violence, and on miscommunication. As such, this is a great movie with a strong independent feel to it. The story is very simple. A man (Forest Whitaker) who was once saved by a mobster, lives a life dedicated to perfection of the martial arts guided by the Hagakure, the code of the samurai (Hagakure roughly means "Hidden Leaves" or "Hidden By Leaves" and was written by Yamamoto Tsunetomo, a samurai who was denied seppuku and lived out his life as a buddhist monk, which is when he wrote his book). Whitaker is a hitman with only one employer (the geriatric mobster who saved him) and can only be contacted by carrier pigeon. When a hit turns bad, he is forced to fight off the mobster and his fellow geriatric "made men" (who are less Al Pacino in The Godfather, than Al Pacino in Donnie Brasco). They personify the same dying way of life that Tsunetomo represented when he wrote his book, which is as much an obituary to a dying ethic, as the samurai class needed to adapt itself even during the Tokugawa shogunate (let alone after the Meiji Restoration in the 19th century).

If you're looking for a fast action movie with lots of hyperrealistic blood and guts, you will be disappointed.

However, if you are interested in the interaction of movies and literature, violence and miscommunication, honor and philosophy, and culture clashes (not in the least the director's slow moving European style superimposed on one of the world's fastest cities, New York), this is a wonderfully set out masterpiece. At turns hilarious, camp, profound, I found the action actually pretty good. In this movie, it isn't about luck or superfast guns, but it is the person who is most prepared to kill who wins.

Forest Whitaker, Camille Winbush, John Tormey and the rest of the cast give performances that range from very nice to great.

Jarmush takes a Far Eastern approach to the Mob hit man genre , whose title character pledges himself to small-time hood Loui in the tradition of the Samurai after Loui saves his life. Ghost Dog (Forest Whitaker) lives alone - except for his friendly homing pigeons - on a rooftop in New York, a self made, modern Samurai warrior who has attached himself to a master in the form of a middle ranking gangster (John Tormey) who once saved his life in an alley brawl. When one of his hits goes awry, Ghost is targeted for elimination, which leads to many dead bodies. Ghost Dog lives strictly by the Samurai code, even when his life is in danger, such as when Mr Vargo (Henry Silva) demands Ghost Dog's execution with the help of Ghost Dog's own master. But Ghost Dog executes his vendetta against the mobsters (Victor Argo, Cliff Gorman) . All assassins live beyond the law... only one follows the code !. Live by the code !. Die by the code !.

Extensive wit, knowing how to depict an attractive story with humor, intelligence, delicious details and a lot sensitivity. Jarmush's engagingly outlandish variation of thre hitman thriller finds Ghost Dog under threat from the wiseguys who've been using his ultra efficient services after the boss's daughter witnesses one if his killings. On to his basic script , Jim grafts an unlikely but coherent variety of motifs, moods, themes and gags: the Mob , though themselves memorably eccentric, simply can't cope with a Afro-American murderer who communicates by carrier pigeon and lives by the ancient code of Japanese samurai. Like most Jarmusch offerings this one's quirky, disjointed and not for everyone, but Whitaker's acting and the off-the-wall humor make up for a lot . Al once a tribute to traditional notions of loyaly, conmradeship, honour, friendship and professionalism, and a stylish, ironic pastiche inspired by the likes of Melville and Suzuki. It is very insightful, funny and highly original, proving that Jarmusch has lost none of his wit, warmth or invention. Great camerawork by prestigious Robby Muller, Win Wenders' regular cameraman, along with a peculiar score by score RZA and stunning bird footage, too.

The picture was professional and originally directed by Jim Jarmusch, getting success enough at box office. His films often involve travelers as well as life after midnight, shows and views the American landscape from a non-commercial viewpoint. The narrative structure of his films mostly lack clear plot progression and focus more on mood and character development. Jarmusch doesn't allow his movies to be dubbed for foreign movie markets, they are mostly shown with subtitles in other countries, his only films that were dubbed are Down by law (1986) which was dubbed in French and this The dead don't die (2019) which was dubbed in French and Spanish. Jim is a notorious writer and director, known for: ¨Mystery Train, Coffee and Cigarettes, Down by law, Night on Earth, Dead Man, Year of the Horse, Ghost Dog, The Limits of Control, Broken Flowers, Gimme danger, Only Lovers Left Alive, Paterson, The Dead Don't Die¨, among others. Rating: 7.5/10, better tan average. A captivating film for completists of the interesting and hit career of Jarmusch.

Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai

* * * * Stars

Forest Whitaker stars in this amazingly good character driven film. Whitaker is Ghost Dog, a New York hitman who lives by the code of the ancient samurai. When a job for the mob goes wrong they decide to cut their losses and put a hit out on him. But since he's a samurai and not just a normal hitman this proves to be a huge mistake for them.

This film really works on three levels. First is the duality of the film's coolness factor and the strength of Whitaker's performance. Whitaker radiates cool in this film. In every scene and every frame, through both action and inaction we know he is being of awesome power. His performance is note perfect. There's one scene where a grievous wrong has been done and we see Whitaker absorb the devastation, then he narrates that when a making decision it should be done in the space of seven breathes. Once that decision is made and we realize Whitaker's full fury will now be unleashed upon his enemies, it sends a tingle up the spine of the viewer. Whitaker's resolve shines through the screen and through his subsequent acting the pace builds until we reach the film's ultimate battle, which is a really, really good fight scene-one of the most satisfying ever filmed.

Furthermore we have the film's philosophy. This aspect of the film is the most important of all even more so than Whitaker's superb performance. As the film's tale unfolds we do need learn about the Way of the Samurai through the eastern philosophy Whitaker espouses as he narrates the film. Often times the film breaks from the action just to linger on the narration and let in sink in. It's a technique that helps set the tone of the film and makes it a completely absorbing experience.

The third thing that the film does really well is it is character and not plot driven. At least just as much time is spent following Whitaker through his day to day life as he interacts with people in his community as is spent on the action parts of the plot. In many ways the film works as commentary on the values of modern society. The scenes with Whitaker and his best friend, a Haitian ice cream vendor provide this film with true heart and soul. We see repeatedly that the two friends can understand each other because they are at peace with the world and in tune with their surroundings, so that their bond transcends mere language. Ghost Dog also has a touching relationship with a young girl that he hopes to impart his code to so that she may one day have the tools of knowledge necessary to escape life in the inner city. These are characters that would have been interesting a two-hour film just living their lives without the samurai and hitman aspects of the film. However both aspects work exceptionally well, the effect taken as a whole make this one of the best films of the past few years.

Besides Whitaker and his friends, one other great performance is given by Tricia Vessey as Louise Vargo, the young girl that sets all that happens in motion. It's a small part but a key one that she does an admirable job with.

If there is a flaw with this film it is that the gangster villains are unnecessarily racist. These scenes are somewhat jarring on first viewing, but are at least consistent with the film's ultimate tone that the gangster's way of life is dying, while the code of the samurai is timeless. It is no coincidence that all the mobsters are much older than Whitaker. Both characters note numerous times that the world is changing, the difference is the gangsters say it with fear and trepidation, while Whitaker notices it as observation. Like the changing of the wind the changing of time and circumstance is neither good nor bad when weighed against his code.

While Whitaker deserves infinite praise for his performance, almost just as much praise must be given to director Jim Jarmush. His directing of this film is quite daring and even more skillfull. His approach to the narration is unusual and yet it works on multiple levels and lets us this is a film more about tone than action. The character driven film is a rare commodity. Most films are plot driven moving from point A to point B with no more creativity than a child connecting a dot-to-dot. Here we have a film that starts with its characters and lets them live the lives they've always lived before the central plot elements invaded their existence. The plot is addressed in a timely enough manner, but we see the characters have their own commitments to fulfill too. It's a hard trick to make a character driven film really work without seeming disjointed or slowly paced but Jarmush succeeds masterfully. Jarmush also fills the film with other references in the background that emphasize the character's natures-such as book on bears or the dialogue of a few cartoons here and there. Many films of try to do this, but few films I have ever seen do it as well as Ghost Dog does.

A final note, the ending of this film that is one that will be very divisive. People will either love it or hate, personally I loved it. It is an ending that is true to all that his come before for both the characters and their conflicting codes but also one that is both surprising despite being adequately foreshadowed.

Conflating the samurai tenet within a tailing-off gangster underworld in an unnamed USA city, Jim Jarmusch's version of LE SAMOURAI is profoundly branded with his idiosyncrasies: a nocturnal cityscape tinged with retro-flair (mostly seen behind the wheels), a vibrating, mind-bending, killer soundtrack (courtesy to RZA), a perversity and absurdity presiding over the turn of events (cartoon hooked mobsters, a lethal shot fired from a drain pipe, the cameo of Gary Farmer's Nobody from DEAD MAN 1995, etc.), a tangy timbre of acedia inhabits in some of his dramatis personae (the boss's daughter portrayed with crashing nonchalance by a sylph-like Tricia Vessey) and a total abandon of anhedonia (twice, the dog's gaze is the self-reflexive bellwether of a preordained corollary).

Ghost Dog (Whitaker), a self-claimed retainer of the world-weary mobster Louie (Tormey), who has saved his life eight years ago, is a proficient hit-man abiding by the codes of HAGAKURE: THE BOOK OF THE SAMAURAI, written by Yamamoto Tsunetomo in the early 18th century, living alone in the top of a building with a bevy of messenger pigeons, his disciplined life and allegiance is challenged when the local mafia boss Ray Vargo (a deadpan Silva) and his right-hand man Sonny Valerio (Gorman), both superiors of Louie, decide to do away with Ghost Dog as a scapegoat for a mission he has adroitly accomplished, a fatuous move because they have no inking of Ghost Dog's credentials, who will become their imminent nemesis, save the wobbling Louie, who is inadvertently submitted to the receiving end of Ghost Dog's undivided loyalty, chiming in with the RASHOMON (a book which undergoes a ritualistic full circle in the end) motif, even their recollections of their first encounter are different (with clear visual aid here), which shrewdly explains the discrepancy of their attitudes, for Louie it may be merely a self-defense, yet for Ghost Dog, he roundly leaves his own life to the mercy of Louie.

An artistically knowing discord looms large between Ghost Dog's zippy choreography and efficiency to rub out his over-confident but ponderous, long-in-the-tooth rivals and a languid but cordial narrative arc encompassing Ghost Dog, his best friend Raymond (De Bankolé), a francophone-only Haitian ice-cream vandor, and a prepubescent bookworm Pearline (Winbush), to whom Ghost Dog eventually lends HAGAKURE, a deed of passing on his mantle.

Forest Whitaker superbly channels a less laconic Alain Delon in the titular role, but is far more superior in transmitting a loner's variegated inscape, hewing to his codes of honor and living by liquidation of mortals, but it doesn't necessarily negate that he can have a warm soul underneath, and truly, the warmth quotient increases whenever there is a scene between him and Isaach De Bankolé's motormouth Raymond, the latter is the bees knee for a sore eye, amusingly and edifyingly, Jarmusch points up that human beings can build a communicative bond in spite of a seemingly insurmountable language barrier, and it is this humanistic perspective gives the film an edge over its built-in romanticism of indiscriminately adhering to something exotic and gnomic, so at large, GHOST DOG is worth cherry-picking by both Jarmusch newbies and diehards.

This is a really cool movie.I saw it yesterday and want to see it again. Actor Forest Whitaker is quite impressing in this movie.He has a calm atmosphere over him,he does not speak much,but those kind of roles are often the hardest ones.Rest of cast is well chosen. Many of the scenes is highly stylized(sort of John Woo,just lesser noise) and the dialogue is very funny at times.Especially Louie`s meeting with his bosses is a standout. Even the music`s good,by rap group RZA.It fits the personality and actions of Ghost Dog perfectly(his sword training on roof is a highlight). So,let me clear something.This is NOT for everyone.It is cool,stylish and funny.But,unfortunately,not very exciting. It`s a special movie,japanese samurai mixed with rap and mafia.What do we get with this? I don`t really know.It`s not in any genre. Just watch it,you`ll be rewarded.

Rating- 9/10