Synopses for Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)
1.
Ghost Dog (Forest Whitaker) lives simply, apart from the world in a homemade shack on the roof of an abandoned building. His only true companion is the trusted carrier pigeon that serves as his primary means of communication with the outside world. He studies the early eighteenthcentury Japanese warrior text Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai. Each morning, he bows to the altar he has constructed and practices the ancient disciplines of the samurai. Ghost Dog is a contract killer, a master of his trade who can whirl a gun at warp speed and moves through this world like a phantom, stealthy and evanescent. In the spirit of the samurai, he has pledged his loyalty to a small-time mobster named Louie (John Tormey), who saved his life many years before.
Written and directed by Jim Jarmusch, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is a hypnotic re-creation of the gangster picture that pits ancient wisdom against modern dysfunction, locating the parallels and differences between samurai and Mafia codes of honor and loyalty. As the modern crime family slides towards extinction, its moral system disintegrates and no one is safe in the struggle for power. In this fractious army, there is no place for the loyalty of the samurai, but his mastery and strength are undiluted.
Ghost Dog is a study of two worlds in collision, a recurring theme in the work of the award-winning filmmaker Jim Jarmusch. One of the world's most distinctive auteurs, Jarmusch's offbeat sensibility and striking, stylized visuals have won him critical acclaim and an international following. His seminal 1984 comedy Stronger Than Paradise won the Caméra d'Or (best first film) at that year's Cannes Film Festival and was named Best Picture by the National Society of Film Critics. Subsequent films, including Down By Law, Mystery Train, Night on Earth and Dead Man, have solidified Jarmusch's reputation as a consistently fine and adventurous filmmaker, who continues to grow and challenge himself.
Wonderfully written, populated by surprising characters, Ghost Dog is by turns soulful, ruminative, funny and explosive. As Ghost Dog, Forest Whitaker gracefully embodies the spirituality, wisdom and strength of the samurai, creating a modern version of the fabled warrior. Quietly and powerfully, he makes us understand Ghost Dog's deep and undying devotion to Hagakure. Whitaker's moving central performance is complimented by the work of a remarkable cast that includes veteran character actors John Tormey, Cliff Gorman, Henry Silva and Victor Argo.
Ghost Dog splices together eighteenth-century Japanese teachings; martial arts; mob iconography; the venerable military primer The Art of War; hip-hop; mythology; and pop entertainment. Lessons from Hagakure comment on the film's action; so do classic television cartoons from "Betty Boop" to "Felix the Cat" and "The Simpsons"' Itchy and Scratchy, animated parables of sex, envy, power and violence. High and low, mystic and antic, classic and of-the-moment: all kinds of cultural tributaries feed into the film's bubbling stream of knowledge.
Adding to the film's potent brew is the expressive soundtrack by THE RZA (pronounced "Rizzah"), the prolific producer and founder of the platinum-selling, hip-hop phenomenon the Wu-Tang Clan. THE RZA is an avid and inventive practitioner of cultural fusion; The Wu-Tang's music and its complex mythology blends Afro-Asiatic principles of mental discipline, kung-fu pyrotechnics, urban realism and horror- movie eerieness. THE RZA's signature sparse, atmospheric sound ushered in a new style in hip-hop, as group recordings and solo albums by individual Wu-Tang members sold in the millions. Fluent in electronica, rock and R&B, THE RZA has produced music for Bjork and Orbital, along with The Wu-Tang Clan's group and solo records.
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai takes viewers on a parallel journey with the modern samurai, for a mesmerizing, meditative and edgy experience. With THE RZA playing Ennio Morricone to Jim Jarmusch's Sergio Leone, Ghost Dog is an inspired meld of movie and music. It is the timehonored story of one man, abiding by a strict code of behavior, who must do battle with ruthless enemies out to destroy him. Street culture blends with Eastern philosophy as Ghost Dog's spiritual journey plays out against the heavy beats and unpredictable violence of the urban frontier.
Ghost Dog's chosen master, Louie, is a foot soldier in a local crime family headed up by Ray Vargo (Henry Silva). The Vargo outfit is a comically low-rent bunch, who operate out of a Chinese restaurant and are on the verge of being evicted from their "social club" for nonpayment of rent. Per the instructions of underboss Sonny Valerio (Cliff Gorman), Louie has hired Ghost Dog to kill Handsome Frank (Richard Portnow), a "made man" who has been consorting with Louise Vargo (Tricia Vessey), Ray Vargo's beautiful, strangely detached young daughter. Ghost Dog executes his assignment with characteristic efficiency, only to then discover Louise watching cartoons in Frank's living room. The emotionally opaque Louise lends the silent hit man her paperback copy of Rashomon.
Furious to hear of Louise's presence, Vargo wants Ghost Dog, a man whom no one but Louie has ever met, dead. Louie tries to explain that his peerless assassin is no ordinary killer, but his description of Ghost Dog's exacting methodology is met with baffled derision. He describes how he met Ghost Dog, who was being savagely beaten by a gang of thugs, one of whom turned his gun on Louie. No one cares, nor is anyone moved that Ghost Dog presented himself to Louie four years later, offering a lifetime of service. Either Ghost Dog goes, or Louie does.
Ghost Dog, however, is a most formidable adversary, disciplined and trained in the art of war. He knows that he and his master are in danger, and prepares for battle with the Vargo family. As prescribed by Hagakure, Ghost Dog carefully considers his strategy and assesses his opponents before he takes action.
Ghost Dog's opponents and allies are all colorful characters; like the tricksters and animals of ancient fables, they add comedy and, occasionally, insight. Ghost Dog's enemies are ruthless and amoral, but they're not without their peculiar charms, from the ardent rap fan Sonny, to the fedora-sporting oldtimer (Gene Ruffini) who has an unforgettable way of contributing to a conversation. And in his bizarrely frozen fashion, Ray Vargo seems to have a certain understanding of Ghost Dog. On the less bloodthirsty side, there is Ghost Dog's best friend, the jovial French-speaking African ice cream vendor Raymond (Isaach de Bankolé). Raymond doesn't understand a word of English, and Ghost Dog doesn't understand any French. An intuitive understanding exists, allowing the two men to continue a dialogue, verbalizing the same thoughts simultaneously although in different languages. Joining this small circle is Pearline (Camille Winbush), the independent pre-adolescent protégé of Ghost Dog whom he meets in the park.
Ghost Dog calmly proceeds with his battle plan, employing the strictures of precision and ingenuity taught by Hagakure. In the end, it will come down to a confrontation with Louie that illustrates the ambiguity of history. Few stories are the same in the eyes of two men; Ghost Dog's memory of his first encounter with Louie is dramatically, crucially different from the other man's recollection, and it cannot be known which version is accurate. That lesson of subjectivity, of course, is embodied in the Japanese classic Rashomon, lent to Ghost Dog by the mob princess Louise, and by him to young Pearline, who now also inherits the code of the samurai.
2.
East meets West in this hip-hop-infused samurai-gangster pic in which Forest Whitaker plays a professional killer who goes by the name of Ghost Dog and who lives by the age-old code of the samurai. When Ghost Dog's code is dangerously betrayed by the dysfunctional mafia family that occasionally employs him, he must find a way to defend himself without breaking the code of the samurai.
3.
Forest Whitaker makes an unlikely modern samurai with his laser-sighted pistols, shabby street clothes, and oddly graceful gait--but then Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is an unusual film. Quirky, contemplative and at times absurd, it is just the kind of offbeat vision we have come to expect from the fiercely independent Jim Jarmusch (Stranger than Paradise, Dead Man). Whitaker is Ghost Dog, a mysterious New York hit man who lives simply on a tenement rooftop and follows a code of behaviour outlined in : Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai (passages of this book are interspersed throughout the film). When the local mob marks him for death in a complicated code of Mafiosi-style honour, Ghost Dog sends a cryptic message to his foes. "That's poetry. The poetry of war", remarks mobster Henry Silva, with sudden respect upon reading the verse. He could be describing the ethereal beauty of Jarmusch's vision, full of wonderful imagery (a night drive across town seems to float in time) and off-centre humour. Though it briefly stalls in a series of assassinations (Jarmusch is no action director), it settles back into character-driven drama in a quietly epic showdown, equal parts samurai adventure, spaghetti western and existential crime movie. The film is likely too unconventional and offbeat for general audiences, but cult-movie buffs and Jarmusch fans will appreciate his idiosyncratic vision. He finds a strange sense of honour in the clash of Old World traditions, and salutes his heroes with a skewed but sincere respect. --Sean Axmaker
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