Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (2000)

Thanks for the memories!

Absolutely the worst movie.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Entertaining film, but badly miscast in my opinion. I couldn't take the nearly 40 year old Forest Whitaker seriously in either the hit-man or samurai context. Isaach De Bankole was great though, lost in translation with his ice cream. I think the film would have worked better if these actors had swapped roles... The mafia guys were either ridiculously cliched or bizarrely comical. The greatest scenes were heavily inspired by better films. The emotional moments fell a bit flat for me, the ending especially didn't hold the weight if should have.

Many rappers like RZA are obsessed with Japanese culture, and samurais in particular. It would be easy to reduce Ghost Dog to a sort of a rapper's fantasy, but it's much more than that. In fact I see it more as a comedy remake of Leon by Luc Besson, both heroes following the same path. Jarmusch says it's a remake of Le Samurai with Alain Delon, but although the story is closer to it than to Leon, it's really different in mood. Ghost Dog is slow, often absurd, poetic, and funny. The old school mafia guys are just hilarious and pathetic, against a fluid and strange Ghost Dog. You really feel the solitary life of Ghost Dog, and there are a few touching moments: his relationship with Raymond, the pigeons, all enhanced by a beautiful soundtrack and cinematography. It's not a movie for everyone, it is very slow, European in style but with a strong American background : the city, the music, the people... It's just a gem of a movie.

Disclaimer: My boys are almost in high school, so I'm watching certain films with them as some sort of cross between the Criterion Collection and the old ABC Afterschool Specials. My tastes may not apply with your superior parenting skills, so check the advisory....especially if language, sex, violence or puns disturb you.The notion of a code of honor drew me to this film, even though neither I nor my boys have watched any Samurai cinema. I just thought Forrest Whitaker was great in this, and so many other films. I forgot about the mob fixation on cartoons (maybe softens the violence, or in my mind at least lampoons America's love of goons).The modes of communication here are excellent, carrier pigeons *and* a friendship between Ghost Dog and the ice cream man on the same wavelength but only meeting in subtitles. The little readings from the booklet Ghost Dog carries helped to reinforce the Afterschool vibe. But as I recall some were a bit more obscure, so maybe a sideways portal into zen? Perhaps the morality play is here is just about mortality. Or better yet about a just mortality. Boys dug it, so success on that front.

All The Reviews Claim That "This Is The Best Movie You Have Never Seen" And They Are Right ... Whitaker (An Excellent Actor) Is A Hit-man For The Mob Who Calls Himself "Ghost Dog" And Lives His Life According To The Philosophy Of The Ancient Samurai ... The Idea Of The Movie (In My Opinion) Is To Give The Newer Generations A Way To Understand And Relate To The Ancient Customs Of The Samurai ... The Movie Brilliantly Achieves This Goal ... The Movie Is Full Of Subtle Innuendos That Are Marvelous If You Take The Time To "Watch" The Movie ... Directed With A Care That Is Rarely Seen In Movies ... A Must Seen On Any List ...