“Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai” A Jarmusch film that combines hip-hop, martial arts, and diverse cultures

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai Synopsis

The story is about a lonely New York hitman, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, who is an avid reader of Hagakure, a book that preaches the samurai spirit. The story depicts his battle with an aging Italian mafia member.

``Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai'' (1999) is an innovative work that combines hip-hop and martial arts. Nowadays it is not uncommon to see the two combined, but at the time it was very novel. And it was created by Jim Jarmusch. It would be no exaggeration to say that Jarmusch created this fusion that has now become commonplace.

Jarmusch's second feature film, Stranger Than Paradise (1984), won the Camera d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, which is given to new directors, and he quickly became a popular director. American film critic Pauline Kael praised Stranger Than Paradise as a "cool, fun, casually attractive punk picaresque." That assessment is also true of Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai. This film is a cool, fun, casually attractive punk picaresque film that also adds hip-hop and martial arts.

“Stranger Than Paradise” trailer

Index

• A script depicting Bushido
• Forest Whitaker, the real karate guy
• The intersection of hip hop and Mars shirt arts
• Surprising New York subculture

A script depicting Bushido

As the subtitle of the original title suggests, this film is about The Samurai " living in New York. The protagonist, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai(Forest Whitaker), is a big fan of Hagakure, a book about Japanese bushido, and works as a personal hitman for Louie (John Tomei), an Italian mafia member who helped him out in the past. However, a problem occurs when a witness is found during a job he is asked to do, and he ends up being pursued by the Italian mafia instead... Jarmusch is said to have thoroughly read Hagakure, which also appears in this film, before writing the screenplay.

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai trailer

Jarmusch said, "The original novel, Hagakure, on which this film is based, is a masterpiece of over 600 pages. I wanted the main character, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai Dog, to be a sort of 'shadow,' and a character like Don Quixote." The famous line quoted by the main character , Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, at the beginning of the film, "Bushido is the way of death," is from Hagakure. It is interesting to see how the film depicts the interactions between Ghost Dog, who is constantly aware of death as an assassin, and the Italian Mafia, an immigrant ice cream vendor who barely speaks English (Isaac de Bankolé), and a girl who loves reading (Camille Winbush).

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai's relationship with the Italian Mafia depicts his past, which holds great meaning for him, while also depicting his The Samurai-like loyalty. The immigrant ice cream man who barely speaks English shows his connection with people that goes beyond language, and we also get a glimpse of Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai's intellectual side, as he may understand French. His relationship with the book-loving girl depicts what Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai wants to leave behind for the future. The film depicts the past, present, and future in terms of relationships with people.

Forest Whitaker, the real karate guy