Jim Jarmusch’s 1995 film DEAD MAN.

This paper looks at Jim Jarmusch’s 1995 film DEAD MAN. Please write an essay of 1100-1200 words. http://americanindiansandfriends.com/movies/dead-man-1995 Prompt: Watch DEAD MAN and address some of the following ideas in an essay. You do not have to address all these ideas; in fact, it may be better to choose one or two ideas to focus on. How does Jarmusch use film language to create ideas, mood, or story? Don’t just identify what the atmosphere is like; make some specific points about how Jarmusch does this with lighting, camera movement or placement, decor and costuming, sound and music, pace, etc. Does the acting style also play into this? And what about the film’s tone: can you describe how the film plays with sincerity, irony, shock effects, or whatever else may be there, to further its purpose? (You do not have to address each of these elements, just go in the direction you see things happening.) One of the film’s subjects is the metaphysical nature of existence. How does it engage mystical or spiritual ideas? Does its main character change in this regard as the film goes along, and if so, how? And again, how does Jarmusch convey this through film language? (Also, consider the title.) Bringing to mind what we’ve talked about in class regarding the Western as being an important part of American mythology, what ideas or themes along these lines does DEAD MAN bring up? Can you see some ways in which the film seems to be commenting on the tradition of the American Western, perhaps by making variations on a traditional Western format? (If you feel like you don’t have enough grounding in what the traditional Western is to have a go at this topic, just proceed with the other topics.) You can address these issues by talking about the film overall, but you can also pick a sequence or two and really concentrate on them – some scenes can contain an entire range of ideas and style and embody what the rest of of the movie is all about. (You do not need to do this – just an idea.) Please do NOT summarize the plot or the action.