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Mystery Train, 1989
In three different stories that take place over the same 24 hours in Memphis, a young couple from Japan (Yuki Kudo and Masatoshi Nagase) tour the city out of a love for Elvis; an Italian woman (Nicoletta Braschi) is stranded in the city while escorting her dead husband's body back to Italy; and a trio of men (Steve Buscemi, Rick Aviles, and Joe Strummer) end up on the run after an unfortunate encounter at a liquor store. All of these characters end up and one point or the other at a run-down hotel, presided over by a night clerk (Screamin' Jay Hawkins) and a bellboy (Cinque Lee).
This was very much Jarmusch, and one that I've been meaning to watch for a while. Much like Night on Earth, the stories have thematic overlaps, though in this case they are also united by taking place in the same city on the same night.
As with any anthology, there are strong points and weaker points. I liked the middle story the best, the one that featured Braschi as the Italian woman stuck spending the night in Memphis. The story manages to be both funny and tense, as she is gently cajoled into buying a ridiculous number of magazines that she carts around for the rest of the episode; but then later there is some genuine menace as she is first scammed and then stalked by two men (one of them Tom Noonan!) who spot her in a diner.
The third story, to me, didn't land quite as well. There are plenty of little moments that do work, thanks to Buscemi and Aviles and their appalled reactions to their friend's behavior. In a basic but very funny moment, Buscemi's character turns on an overhead lamp by pulling a string . . . .followed by a rain of plaster and then the lamp itself crashing to the ground. But there is something a bit unfocused about the segment, as neither the narrative nor the characters make for a great arc.
I really enjoyed Hawkins and Lee as the night clerk and bellboy respectively. The two have good chemistry with each other and with the various customers who cross their paths. Their good natured banter and seen-it-all wariness are charming and they really ground and unite the various segments.
Overall I liked this one quite a bit. I just wish that the last segment had a little more pop.
Mystery Train, 1989
In three different stories that take place over the same 24 hours in Memphis, a young couple from Japan (Yuki Kudo and Masatoshi Nagase) tour the city out of a love for Elvis; an Italian woman (Nicoletta Braschi) is stranded in the city while escorting her dead husband's body back to Italy; and a trio of men (Steve Buscemi, Rick Aviles, and Joe Strummer) end up on the run after an unfortunate encounter at a liquor store. All of these characters end up and one point or the other at a run-down hotel, presided over by a night clerk (Screamin' Jay Hawkins) and a bellboy (Cinque Lee).
This was very much Jarmusch, and one that I've been meaning to watch for a while. Much like Night on Earth, the stories have thematic overlaps, though in this case they are also united by taking place in the same city on the same night.
As with any anthology, there are strong points and weaker points. I liked the middle story the best, the one that featured Braschi as the Italian woman stuck spending the night in Memphis. The story manages to be both funny and tense, as she is gently cajoled into buying a ridiculous number of magazines that she carts around for the rest of the episode; but then later there is some genuine menace as she is first scammed and then stalked by two men (one of them Tom Noonan!) who spot her in a diner.
The third story, to me, didn't land quite as well. There are plenty of little moments that do work, thanks to Buscemi and Aviles and their appalled reactions to their friend's behavior. In a basic but very funny moment, Buscemi's character turns on an overhead lamp by pulling a string . . . .followed by a rain of plaster and then the lamp itself crashing to the ground. But there is something a bit unfocused about the segment, as neither the narrative nor the characters make for a great arc.
I really enjoyed Hawkins and Lee as the night clerk and bellboy respectively. The two have good chemistry with each other and with the various customers who cross their paths. Their good natured banter and seen-it-all wariness are charming and they really ground and unite the various segments.
Overall I liked this one quite a bit. I just wish that the last segment had a little more pop.