Coming Soon: The Thin Man pays homage to Jim Jarmusch with an eight-week series

When Stranger Than Paradise hit the big screen, in 1984, indie director Jim Jarmusch was right in the thick of a trend: the American movie, made over in a drifting, plotless European sensibility that aped the way life usually continues to unfold, without a real storyline, sometimes in parallel worlds...

By Susan Froyd

January 4, 2011

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When Stranger Than Paradise hit the big screen, in 1984, indie director Jim Jarmusch was right in the thick of a trend: the American movie, made over in a drifting, plotless European sensibility that aped the way life usually continues to unfold, without a real storyline, sometimes in parallel worlds. It was fresh, dystopian, shallow and deep, and it marked the beginning of a run of Jarmusch films that's still in motion, featuring musician-actors and cult figures in many a frame.

In the spirit of its last series, an homage to the films of Pedro Almodóvar, the Thin Man will unreel eight delicious Jarmusch films on consecutive Wednesday nights in the Ubisububi Room, beginning tomorrow (January 5) at 7:30 p.m. with Stranger Than Paradise. Admission is free, along with the après-screening conversation. The Thin Man is at 2015 East 17th Avenue. Following is a taste of each selection:

Stranger than Paradise follows disillusioned youth on a road trip:

Down by Law, with Tom Waits, John Lurie and Roberto Benigni as convicts on the lam:

Mystery Train: A three-way tale set in Memphis:

'

Night on Earth: five cab rides in five world cities as the world turns:

Dead Man: a period western scored by Neil Young:

Ghost Dog, in which Forest Whitaker plays a one-armed samurai hit man:

Broken Flowers, starring Bill Murray in the midst of a mid-life crisis:

The Limits of Control, Jarmusch's most recent film:

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Susan Froyd started writing for Westword as the "Thrills" editor in 1992 and never quite left the fold. These days she still freelances for the paper in addition to walking her dogs, enjoying cheap ethnic food and reading voraciously. Sometimes she writes poetry.

Contact: Susan Froyd

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