fa-oy

In what is possibly one of the most accomplished and ambitious films among Jim Jarmusch's quite extensive work, we are presented with five occasionally entertaining, humorous and moving stories which take place in five taxis, each driving through their respective cities at night. Inside these taxis characters of a wide assortment of personalities get to interact with each other. The acting is top-notch throughout the entire film, which adds to the real-life feel the film intends to portray. There are, however, a few negative aspects I feel compelled to point out.

Because the film moves from one language to another, the audience, depending on their cultural background, native language, or even personal tastes, is bound to connect more with a particular story than the other. This is probably one of most notorious difficulties the film suffers from, as, for instance, the story starring Roberto Benigni most likely entirely differs from the mood of the previous ones and the last story; personally, this story was the one I liked the least, although it was entertaining, if maybe a little bit absurd at times. Also, changing from one story to the other might be a little bit abrupt, as you must immediately adapt to the new characters. Separately, every story works perfectly on their own, but having to watch them together in a 2-hour film might as well represent a heavy task for the viewer. Then again, this is also the strongest aspect of the film, as it succeeds in trying to depict a similar situation in 5 diverse environments.

Do not get me wrong, the negative aspects that I pointed out are the ones I believe keep this film from being a complete masterpiece. All in all, the film is excellent, and it definitely should be viewed by anyone interested in cinema, as it is highly innovative.

A quite different Mizoguchi film we have right here, but it entertained me all the way through and the cinematography is top-notch; the camera-work and scenes are outstanding as usual. The film starts slow and takes a while to unfold, but once the story is unfolded and everything is cleared up, it hooked me. The only thing lacking might be the ending, which leaves things quite incomplete and it kind of left me wanting for more, but I believe it was intended to end in this manner. Perhaps they were planning to produce a sequel or something of the sort, although I am not anywhere sure about it, so do not take my opinion for granted.

All I can say is that this film is worth watching; it will not disappoint any Mizoguchi fan.

An invisible train rides into a poor, gloomy neighborhood to show us the lives of its peculiar and unique dwellers. Dodeskaden stands for the sound of rail wheels as they advance on the track, although rather than real wheels, the sound is articulated by Roku-chan, the character that leads us to the place where the film unravels.

The place, as I mentioned above, is inhabited by some really atypical people; we have two men that are very good friends to the extent they would exchange their wives so they can forget about their daily discussions for a while, as they usually arrive home drunk; There is a father living in the streets who often imagines building a mansion piece by piece in an unknown location, getting his son involved in the process; there is also a mysterious man who never utters a single word and whose presence is reminiscent of death itself. Characters like these are what make this film worth the watch (accompanied by superb acting).

Any Kurosawa fan should not hesitate to pick this one up, they will surely find something of interest here.