Jim Jarmusch is one of the most influential American indie film directors. Over the course of his career he has tackled everything from the road movie to the western and done them all with a unique voice and beautifully artistic vision. Below are Jarmusch’s five best films, which anyone that is a fan of independent cinema, or just films that aren’t saddled by Hollywood conventions, should definitely check out. Jarmusch may have a recognizable and artistic style, but his films are also accessible and entertaining, making him a rare form of director in independent film.
Stranger Than Paradise (1984)
Shot in black and white, Jarmusch’s first major film is a beautiful re-invention of the road movie. Three quirky characters (including a Hungarian cousin new to the country) embark on ill-advised road trip from New York to Miami. The characters learn about each other as they traverse across multiple American landscapes. Jarmusch follows a non-traditional format in his storytelling, a format that has made his film a staple of American independent film discussions. The film is romantic, but realistic, a youthful take on travel and soul searching.
Dead Man (1995)
Again shot in crisp black and white, Dead Man turns western conventions on their heads with the story of an accountant named William Blake that kills a man in self-defense only to be hunted by three bizarre bounty hunters. Blake finds help from a Native American named Nobody, a man that mistakes him for the famous Romantic poet. With an incredibly subtle and moving performance by Johnny Depp as William Blake, and a strong supporting cast, Dead Man is both beautifully bleak and goofy. The violence and rugged individualism of the western persist, but Jarmusch also mocks it with humorous interactions and nonsensical scenes.
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (2000)
What Dead Man did for the western, Ghost Dog did for the Kung-Fu and Mobster genres. The story of young African American who finds solace and a way of life in the ancient Japanese teachings of the samurai, Ghost Dog is like most of Jarmusch’s films cold and striking, yet also heartwarming and poetic. When Ghost Dog’s master, a low-level mafia man, is ordered to kill Ghost Dog the urban samurai proceeds to take out the entire crime family while pausing to speak with a French-speaking ice cream man and a little girl. An instantly appealing film, Ghost Dog also comes packed with deep rooted symbolism and a large helping of Eastern philosophy.
Coffee and Cigarettes (2003)
A film years in the making, Coffee and Cigarettes consists of a number of short vignettes that each involve a conversation over (you guessed it) coffee and cigarettes. Featuring a diverse cast that spans from Bill Murray and Wu-Tang Clan’s Rza to Roberto Benigni and Cate Blanchett, this film is a genius piece of cinema that exhibits the power of well-written conversation. Each segment of the film is clever, introspective, and smile-inducing. Jarmusch proves himself to be a master of dialog, while his fantastic cast outdo themselves. If you are looking for a film that is just a little bit different, this is the perfect choice.
Broken Flowers (2005)
Starring Bill Murray, Broken Flowers is the story of a 50-something bachelor that receives a letter in the mail informing him he became a father years before. Combining the romantic comedy with the road movie genre he helped define, Jarmusch drags Murray around the country, from backwoods shacks to glossy suburbs, as he visits past flings in an attempt to figure out which one sent him the letter. The movie may have a humorous veneer, but Murray’s character comes packed with a palpable loneliness and confusion. An extremely well-crafted and beautiful film, Broken Flowers is a slow-paced trip through the psychology of relationships and the unanswerable questions about love.
