Mystery Train

Jim Jarmusch:
Mystery Train (USA, 1989)
110 min. • English
Age limit 12

Is Carl Perkins better than Elvis? Take a trip to Memphis with Jim Jarmusch to find out! Named after a song by Elvis, the film has three separate storylines which are all centered around the rundown Arcade hotel where a bunch of peculiar characters end up. They include a Japanese couple who marvel at the American way of life, liquor store raiders hiding from the authorities, and even the ghost of the King himself manifests unwillingly. According to Jarmusch, who is known for his minimalistic cinema art, Mystery Train is “the trilogy to end the trilogy”. Two previous parts, Stranger than Paradise and Down by Law, are also among the best American movies of the 80s.

In true Jarmusch fashion, supporting actors include some of his favorite artists: Joe Strummer, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, and Tom Waits, who also appeared in Down by Law, as a radio DJ. Mystery Train comes from a convivial place where movies are film, coffee is black, and music is rock ‘n’ roll!

See also:

» Alejandro Jodorowsky: The Dance of Reality (La danza de la realidad)
» Jim Jarmusch: Only Lovers Left Alive
» Joel & Ethan Coen: Inside Llewyn Davis
» Alejandro Jodorowsky: The Dance of Reality (La danza de la realidad)
» Jim Jarmusch: Only Lovers Left Alive
» Joel & Ethan Coen: Inside Llewyn Davis

< back