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Movies / On DVD / Dead Man
Dead Man

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Dead Man (1996)

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Reviews Counted:31

Fresh:22

Rotten:9

Average Rating:6.9/10

Runtime: 2 hrs 7 mins

Genre: Westerns

Synopsis: In bringing his distinct vision to the Western genre, writer-director Jim Jarmusch has created a quasi-mystical avant-garde drama that remains a deeply spiritual viewing experience. After losing... In bringing his distinct vision to the Western genre, writer-director Jim Jarmusch has created a quasi-mystical avant-garde drama that remains a deeply spiritual viewing experience. After losing his parents and fiancée, a Cleveland accountant named William Blake (a remarkable Johnny Depp) spends all his money and takes a train to the frontier town of Machine in order to work at a factory. Upon arriving in Machine, he is denied his expected job and finds himself a fugitive after murdering a man in self-defense. Wounded and helpless, Blake is befriended by Nobody (Gary Farmer), a wandering Native American who considers him to be a ghostly manifestation of the famous poet. Nobody aids Blake in his flight from three bumbling bounty hunters, preparing him for his final journey--a return to the world of the spirits. Jarmusch once again employs the beautifully contrasted black-and-white photography of Robby Müller, which sets a poetic, dreamy mood. He also fades in and out of scenes in order to better reflect Blake's dazed, weak mental state. Adding an even greater depth to the film is Neil Young's haunting score, which completes the overall effect. DEAD MAN stands firmly as a timeless work of art whose impact only increases upon subsequent viewings. [More]

Starring: Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Lance Henriksen, Michael Wincott

Starring: Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Lance Henriksen, Michael Wincott, Mili Avital, Iggy Pop, Jared Harris, Billy Bob Thornton, Crispin Glover, Eugene Byrd, Michelle Thrush, Gabriel Byrne, John Hurt, Alfred Molina, Robert Mitchum

Director: Jim Jarmusch

Director: Jim Jarmusch
Screenwriter: Jim Jarmusch
Producer: Demetra J. MacBride, Karen Koch
Composer: Neil Young

[See More Credits]

Reviews for Dead Man

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1 - 20 (sorted by critic A-Z; UK critics are listed first)
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A visual, poetic journey not unlike Coppola's Apocalypse Now.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

a low-key classic of strangely poetic beauty - a western for sleepwalkers and dreamers.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
01/05/09
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Eye for Film

Visionary Western with interesting bits on the myth of the frontier, violence and artistic outlaws.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
08/27/02
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

Coy to a fault, the movie collapses under its own weight with 90 minutes to go, despite Robby MÃuller's impressive black-and-white photography, which puts the film on a higher artistic plane than other equally unbearable movies.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Mike Clark
Mike Clark
USA Today

Characteristically meandering and sardonic, with Robby Muller's floating, shimmering camerawork, a catalog of witty cameos, and one of the most beautiful modern film-scores

Full Review Source: Not Coming to a Theater Near You | comment Comment
08/07/06
Leo Goldsmith
Leo Goldsmith
Not Coming to a Theater Near You

I was held by Depp's transformation from white-man non-entity to the Jarmusch version of the affectless Man With No Name.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
12/30/06
Rob Gonsalves
Rob Gonsalves
eFilmCritic.com

It's completely irony-free because it's so convinced that it has something potent to say.

Full Review Source: MovieMartyr.com | comment Comment
04/24/02
Jeremy Heilman
Jeremy Heilman
MovieMartyr.com

Quite exquisite. Beautiful, really.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
09/26/06
Dan Jardine
Dan Jardine
Apollo Guide

Minimalism defines this revisionist and challenging noir- Western, a welcome artistic departure from Jarmusch's increasingly tired and tiresome Downtown New York sensibility.

Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
06/19/06
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

The director's pacing and the relaxed and smooth editing by Jay Rabinowitz make for a dreamy show.

Full Review Source: Internet Reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Steve Rhodes
Steve Rhodes
Internet Reviews

It is an American masterpiece and one of the best films of the '90s.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
06/03/03
Dragan Antulov
Dragan Antulov
rec.arts.movies.reviews

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Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
01/01/00
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews

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Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

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Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
01/01/00
Scott Renshaw
Scott Renshaw
Apollo Guide

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Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
01/01/01
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope

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Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Marc Savlov
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle

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Full Review Source: Detroit News | comment Comment
01/01/00
Susan Stark
Susan Stark
Detroit News

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Full Review Source: Cinematter | comment Comment
01/01/00
Madeleine Williams
Madeleine Williams
Cinematter
 
 
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