Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai

I’ve been too manhandled by extremes like Romeo Must Die or The Last Dragon to find the fusion of African-American and East Asian culture all that refreshing anymore. Apart from the atmosphere of a tidy American ghetto, what I enjoyed most was the notion that all the characters in the film – the mobsters, the samurai, and the ice cream vendors – are so passionate and exaggerated in their roles that the whole inner universe is kind of a perpetual LARP or, better still, a children's game where kids pretend to be adults. The film proves, among other things, that we simply choose what we are and no one can assign it to us unless we want it. (10/05/2022)

A great example of how Jim Jarmusch is versatile when it comes to genre, and even though it's not a frantic action spectacle bursting with money poured into it, it's all the smarter for it. And of course, there will be action, make no mistake about it. There's a lot of shooting here, and it's quite inventive at times, you'll be surprised. Plus, it's really smart. (03/29/2017)

For me, hands down, the best Jarmusch. If it weren't for his unearthly direction, the film would have been lumped in with dozens of others on a similar theme and in a few years no one would even remember it. But he made an almost cult-classic with a compelling story, a simple yet unique ending, and last but not least, an excellent Whitaker, who doesn't say much, but his acting mastery stands out all the more. Some of the wisecracks are disarming, the storyline with the chatty French ice-cream man is absolutely brilliant, and the strange music by RZA underscores it all beautifully. But the best is the final quote, which aptly characterized the whole film and its thinking. Or not? :) Right between four and five stars. (03/01/2013)

Another piece of Jarmusch-esque crap. When he makes a western, it's a draggy B&W hipster movie with Johnny Depp. When he decides to make a vampire movie, Tilda and Tommy are so happy to be there. Alternatively, he likes to research Billy Murray's former loves, so why not make fun of the fact that a black man would be involved with the Samurai Code? It's fun. (06/26/2017)

A simple story delivered in an unusual. I have never seen Whitaker so cool before and the dialogue scenes between the main characters are fantastically intense. You can see that the director is an old hand. A simple, TV-looking, yet excellently crafted piece, tailored for a narrow audience. (01/09/2010)