Mystery Train (1989)

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Fantastic!

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

This is the third film by Jarmusch that I watch(the others being Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai and Night on Earth). He is very interesting, and clearly not into putting out something mainstream. Cultural differences, superficiality and relationships are explored. Editing and cinematography(with long takes and often little movement to the camera) are subtle and remain hidden; not manipulating us, merely objectively showing the events, not judging. The focus is on the characters, all of them well-written and credible. In Memphis, we meet two Japanese tourists(a lot of truth about how people behave when visiting other countries), an Italian woman and a couple of people who live there. It's worth noting how much they talk about pop culture; arguing if Elvis or Perkins was better, what old television show they like, and other superficial things. The thing is not that these people have no problems, or that they don't, at least deep down, realize this; it's that they don't feel like they can solve them, and maybe even admitting that they're there seems like it will just make it hurt more. They are all very human and you can relate to them. This consists of three stories, connected by a couple of things. The humor is great, very discreet. I especially enjoyed Steve... well, Buscemying. Noonan is amazing, as well. The acting is spot-on for most, really. Dialog is important in this; what is said and what isn't. There is a bit of strong language and one sex scene(no nudity, not graphic, mainly moaning and movement) in this. I recommend this to every fan of dramas who do not need visual tricks to sustain their attention. 8/10

The opening shots of Jim Jarmusch's new film show two young Japanese tourists in a faded Amtrak coach, listening to their Walkmans as the train pulls through the edge of Memphis. The girl is an Elvis fan. Her boyfriend believes Carl Perkins was the real founder of rock 'n' roll. They have come to see the shrines of Memphis such as Sun Records. In other hands, this pattern would head straight into cultural satire, into a comic knock on rock tourism, with a sardonic destination at Graceland as the punchline. But, though he is a natural at dry goofiness, Jarmusch is not quite as much a comedian as an idealist, who sees America as an immigrant might, as a bizarre, nostalgic country where the urban landscapes are painted by Robert Henri and the all-night blues stations supply a soundtrack for life.The tourists arrive in Memphis and haul their luggage through the yawning train station, and walk to the Sun studios, where a guide babbles on with her pitch about Presley and Perkins faster than an auctioneer could. Then they check into one of those flop joints that has grown tired waiting for the traveling salesmen who no longer come. This is a hotel out of a 1940s noir, with neon signs and a linoleum lobby, and a night clerk who is surprised by nothing and a bellboy whose eyes are so broad, he might be seeing everything for the first time. Other people will check into this hotel during the movie's lasting night of intricacy.The soundtrack is from a local radio station, and Elvis' version of Blue Moon is heard at some point during all three segments of the narrative, supplying a collective bond, as does an offscreen gunshot. And so does the ghost of Elvis, who appears to habituate the movie with his sound and his mythology, and who materializes to an Italian widow played by Nicoletta Braschi. Jarmusch believes in an American landscape that took place before city spread, before the reliable fruitlessness of the fast-food strips on the highways leading into town, saloons where everybody knows each other, diners where the short-order cook is in charge, and landscapes across railroad tracks to a hotel where vagabonds are not only greeted, they are known.This indie tapestry is Jarmusch's third major film, after Stranger than Paradise and Down by Law, and definitely a precursor to his next film, Night On Earth, which is more solidly an anthology and explores the entire world at random. In all three there is the conviction that America cannot be nimbly encased into conservative and reassuring shopping assemblies, that there must be a life of the night for the drifters and the dropouts, the heroes of no permanent address and no evident vocational position. However indeed their lives may be horizontal and bare, in Jarmusch's conception they are the true residents of the city, mainly after midnight.Speaking of the film as if separate from the universe of the Jarmusch filmography, this uncommon genre-less universalistic film, an anthology film that upon reflection does not seem like three stories but one, is not a traditional plot, and it is not how the story ends that is essential, but how it endures. It is inhabited by dozens of minute, oddly contemplated bits of behavior, such as the rapport between Screamin' Jay Hawkins' hilarious night clerk and Cinque Lee's bellboy, or between the two teenage Japanese tourists, whose whole idea of what America is like is fashioned out of the sum of ideas, perspectives, attitudes and images of the mainstream. The greatest element about this almost antiquated album is that it takes you to an America you sense that you ought to be able to find for yourself, if you just knew where to look. A place of people who are permitted to be personas, to be themselves. The train is the foolproof synecdoche in this movie. It's not where it's been that's of value, or even where it's going.

This is a quite an original film and interesting too. What is great is the fact that Jarmusch can balance all three stories and make them all work.Far From Yokohama- A good segment. I thought that the two Asian newcomers were very appealing and interesting to watch. Contains a lot about Japanese culture and beliefs as well. Main fault: It plods suddenly when they get to the hotel.A Ghost- The weakest. This could have been better. One thing I did not like was the uninteresting woman played by Roberto Benigni's wife. I think that she is unappealing and should not have been cast. I also think that the Elvis ghost thing was silly. A disappointment.Lost In Space- The best, by far. This is hilarious and well-written. Joe Strummer is great playing a drunk the entire movie. Rick Aviles is also quite amusing as Will Robinson. Buscemi is the best, though, as the man who keeps whining about how he got himself into the situation of this tale. This is basically what makes the movie worth it.I think that all three of them were decent. Special kudos to Lee and Screaming Jay as the two constantly arguing hotel receptionists. They are the source of what maybe the funniest moment, which is the plum scene. Also good is the short bit of Lee taking the fly swatter and hitting the fake fly. A completely original film about Elvis's spirit in Memphis. This is quintessential Jarmusch.***1/2 out of ****

This movie is another masterpiece from Jim Jarmusch. The movie is about three different stories which are taking place in the same place at the same time (at night in some cheap motel). Jim Jarmusch is really good in telling different stories who are connected one to each other and also in this case he's doing a great job. The characters in the movie are very realistic, likable and you can feel connected to them despite the fact they're always in some bizarre troubles. Mystery train is another movie which shows the life of common people, but I think this is his funniest movie, just before Night on earth. The humor is fresh and unpredictable, very warm and realistic. The movie consists of three different stories: Far from Yokohama - the first story of a young Japanese couple, obsessed with Elvis Presley. From the beginning very humorous clip, but both man and woman were really annoying for my taste and after a while this clip became boring and uninteresting, especially the last clip with sex scene in hotel.Ghost - I liked this one. Very funny, somewhere scary with the story of the ghost of Elvis Presley haunting the city, but overall a really good clip. The appearance of Elvis was very funny and the dialog between two main female characters were also great.Lost in space - The best clip. Funny and sad at the same time. Steve Buscemi is really funny in this clip, also Joe Strummer was very convincing character. The way this clip ends is one of the best movie scenes I've ever seen - the characters running away from the police, despite the fact that the police are not looking for them. The best clip in the whole movie.In all three clips I especially liked Tom Waits and his voice as a DJ on a local radio. Overall, Mystery Train is a funny movie, with a lot of drama, comedy and memorable scenes. Jarmusch is really a genius of making movies and this one proves it. For the fans of Jarmusch this is MUST SEE movie.