Permanent Vacation (1980)

A young man wanders New York City searching for some meaning in life and encounters many idiosyncratic characters.

Director:

Jim Jarmusch

Writer:

Jim Jarmusch

Stars:

Chris Parker, Leila Gastil, John Lurie

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chris Parker	...	Allie
Leila Gastil	...	Leila
John Lurie	...	Sax player
Richard Boes	...	War vet
Sara Driver	...	Nurse
Charlie Spademan	...	Patient
Jane Fire	...	Nurse
Ruth Bolton	...	Mother
Evelyn Smith	...	Patient
María Duval	...	Latin girl
Lisa Rosen	...	Popcorn girl
Frankie Faison	...	Man in lobby
Suzanne Fletcher	...	Girl in car
Felice Rosser	...	Woman by mailbox
Eric Mitchell	...	Car fence

Storyline

In downtown Manhattan, a twenty-something boy ('Chris Parker')whose Father is not around and whose Mother is institutionalized, is a big Charlie Parker fan. He almost subconsciously searches for more meaning in his life and meets a few characters along the way.

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Plot Keywords:

new york city | two word title | drifter | graffiti | manhattan new york city | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 April 1984 (France)

Also Known As:

Dauernd Ferien

Filming Locations:

Roosevelt Island, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinesthesia Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The book Allie gives Leila is "Maldoror and Poems" by Lautreamont (Penguin Classics 1978), one of the earliest surrealist stories.

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Goofs

The reflection of Leila sitting in the chair shows the the back of the chair near to the mirror, when all other shots have it the other side of Leila.

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Quotes

Allie: Some people, you know, they - they can distract themselves with ambitions and motivation to work, you know, but not me... They think people like myself are crazy, you know. Everyone does because of the way I live, you know.

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Connections

Features The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)

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Soundtracks

My Boyfriend's Back
Written by Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein, and Richard Gottehrer
Performed by The Angels

User Reviews

Permanent ennui

Let's not put too much lipstick on this pig. Permanent Vacation ... cool title, memorable lead, nice style and all that, but ultimately an often boring movie. The only thing that keeps this above the water is the simple fact that director Jim Jarmusch followed it up with some of the best movies of all time. So it's cool to see him blunder his way through his first oeuvre.

The fact that our hero Allie is disenfranchised because his mother is in a mental institution might constitute the oldest plot device in the book. There is really no development, no suspense, nothing intriguing. Jarmusch commits the classic mistake of every first-time filmmaker; he has yet to learn that it's not enough to put a crass character before the camera. You have to make the viewer care about him. And unfortunately you can't do that by boring the crap out of the viewer. Allie is a high-strung, messed-up kid who could franchise disenfranchisement if only he could be bothered. He has a girlfriend that should rightfully be mine, who gets a kick out of dating a pretentious freeloader with a croaky voice. He meets a bunch of strange people, nicks a car, then gets the feck out on a boat. Cue amazing end sequence shot on a boat going away from Manhattan but looking back at it.

Check it out if you're a spotty movie boffin with no social life.

Give it a miss if you're more into Hannah Montana.