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#699 - Broken Flowers
Jim Jarmusch, 2005
An old businessman receives an anonymous letter informing him that he has a son so he compiles a list of ex-girlfriends and sets out to visit them all.
Sometimes I feel like appreciating Jim Jarmusch on the back of his more ostensibly accessible genre films like Dead Man or Only Lovers Left Alive is only scratching the surface of his film-making career, especially when he made his name off the back off unorthodox interpersonal dramas where the complete lack of obvious style became its own style. Of course, one could just as easily make the case for Broken Flowers being Jarmusch's own take on the detective genre. The film starts by following a wealthy, ageing businessman (Bill Murray) who has just had his younger girlfriend (Julie Delpy) walk out on him. The mystery starts when he receives a letter typed in red ink on pink paper from an unspecified former lover; this letter informs him about a son that he never knew about. Spurred on by his detective wannabe friend (Jeffrey Wright), Murray makes a list of all the women who could have possibly written the letter before reluctantly going on a cross-country trip to figure out which one may have sent him the letter. It's a solid concept that could definitely have been played for much more emotional and dramatic effect by another director but in the hands of Jarmusch the resulting film is much more understated.
Of course, I do wonder if Broken Flowers might be a little too understated for its own good. It certainly assembles a strong cast; Murray builds off the same weary ennui that earned him acclaim in Lost in Translation and makes for a good presence to centre the film around. As with several of Jarmusch's other films, the most well-known actors may get little more than a scene or two of varying length but they still commit and deliver decent performances. The film's episodic nature does make it feel a bit listless; while listlessness does characterise just about every film Jarmusch has ever made, it feels a bit too pronounced here. His tendency to once again include low-key running gags does fit the extremely deadpan nature of the comedy on offer, though this naturally isn't the kind of comedy that induces a lot of chuckles. Still, Broken Flowers is definitely worth a watch due to the quality of the cast and the way in which the film is peppered with the odd good moment. Like just about every Jarmusch film, it is at once an off-putting film to those who can't quite get into his off-beat brand of cinema and a serviceable entry point for those who can - that being said, he has definitely done better when it comes to low-key character dramas.
Jim Jarmusch, 2005
An old businessman receives an anonymous letter informing him that he has a son so he compiles a list of ex-girlfriends and sets out to visit them all.
Sometimes I feel like appreciating Jim Jarmusch on the back of his more ostensibly accessible genre films like Dead Man or Only Lovers Left Alive is only scratching the surface of his film-making career, especially when he made his name off the back off unorthodox interpersonal dramas where the complete lack of obvious style became its own style. Of course, one could just as easily make the case for Broken Flowers being Jarmusch's own take on the detective genre. The film starts by following a wealthy, ageing businessman (Bill Murray) who has just had his younger girlfriend (Julie Delpy) walk out on him. The mystery starts when he receives a letter typed in red ink on pink paper from an unspecified former lover; this letter informs him about a son that he never knew about. Spurred on by his detective wannabe friend (Jeffrey Wright), Murray makes a list of all the women who could have possibly written the letter before reluctantly going on a cross-country trip to figure out which one may have sent him the letter. It's a solid concept that could definitely have been played for much more emotional and dramatic effect by another director but in the hands of Jarmusch the resulting film is much more understated.
Of course, I do wonder if Broken Flowers might be a little too understated for its own good. It certainly assembles a strong cast; Murray builds off the same weary ennui that earned him acclaim in Lost in Translation and makes for a good presence to centre the film around. As with several of Jarmusch's other films, the most well-known actors may get little more than a scene or two of varying length but they still commit and deliver decent performances. The film's episodic nature does make it feel a bit listless; while listlessness does characterise just about every film Jarmusch has ever made, it feels a bit too pronounced here. His tendency to once again include low-key running gags does fit the extremely deadpan nature of the comedy on offer, though this naturally isn't the kind of comedy that induces a lot of chuckles. Still, Broken Flowers is definitely worth a watch due to the quality of the cast and the way in which the film is peppered with the odd good moment. Like just about every Jarmusch film, it is at once an off-putting film to those who can't quite get into his off-beat brand of cinema and a serviceable entry point for those who can - that being said, he has definitely done better when it comes to low-key character dramas.