Dead Man (1995)

On the run after murdering a man, accountant William Blake encounters a strange Native American man named Nobody who prepares him for his journey into the spiritual world.

Director:

Jim Jarmusch

Writer:

Jim Jarmusch

Stars:

Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Crispin Glover

5 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johnny Depp	...	William Blake
Gary Farmer	...	Nobody
Crispin Glover	...	Train Fireman
Lance Henriksen	...	Cole Wilson
Michael Wincott	...	Conway Twill
Eugene Byrd	...	Johnny 'The Kid' Pickett
John Hurt	...	John Scholfield
Robert Mitchum	...	John Dickinson
Iggy Pop	...	Salvatore 'Sally' Jenko
Gabriel Byrne	...	Charlie Dickinson
Jared Harris	...	Benmont Tench
Mili Avital	...	Thel Russell
Jimmie Ray Weeks	...	Marvin, Older Marshal
Mark Bringelson	...	Lee, Younger Marshal
John North	...	Mr. Olafsen

Storyline

This is the story of a young man's journey, both physically and spiritually, into very unfamiliar terrain. William Blake travels to the extreme western frontiers of America sometime in the second half of the nineteenth century. Lost and badly wounded, he encounters a very odd, outcast Native American named "Nobody", who believes Blake is actually the dead English poet of the same name. The story, with Nobody's help, leads William Blake through situations that are in turn comical and violent. Contrary to his nature, circumstances transform Blake into a hunted outlaw, a killer, and a man whose physical existence is slowly slipping away. Thrown into a world that is cruel and chaotic, his eyes are opened to the fragility that defines the realm of the living. It is as though he passes through the surface of a mirror, and emerges into a previously-unknown world that exists on the other side.

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Plot Keywords:

revisionist western | arthouse | philosopher | black humor | poetry | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes it is preferable not to travel with a dead man.

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Western

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for moments of strong violence, a graphic sex scene and some language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA Germany Japan

Language:

English Cree

Release Date:

10 May 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man

Filming Locations:

Hoover Dam, Arizona-Nevada Border, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$9,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$104,649, 12 May 1996

Gross USA:

$1,037,847

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,037,847

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pandora Filmproduktion, JVC Entertainment Networks, Newmarket Capital Group

Technical Specs

Runtime:

121 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Dolby SR

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gary Farmer reprised his role as Nobody in Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999).

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Goofs

While the three bounty hunters are waiting in the office, Conway asks Johnny for tobacco, then dismissively says that Johnny isn't even old enough to smoke. There would have been no laws governing tobacco use by minors at the time this movie was set, and persons as young as nine or ten might have smoked or chewed tobacco without raising much comment other than that tobacco was considered a bad habit in the young. The thought that Johnny was too young to smoke should not have even crossed Conway's mind. (It is also possible that Conway was simply commenting on how extremely young Johnny is in general--that he's too young even to have picked up such a habit.)

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Quotes

[first lines]
Train Fireman: Look out the window. And doesn't this remind you of when you were in the boat, and then later than night, you were lying, looking up at the ceiling, and the water in your head was not dissimilar from the landscape, and you think to yourself, "Why is it that the landscape is moving, but the boat is still?"

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Crazy Credits

In between the Set Production Assistants and First Assistant Editor is the "Hangin'-out Guy," Nemo Labrizzi.

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Connections

References Apocalypse Now (1979)

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Soundtracks

Billy Boy
Played in the saloon

User Reviews

Filmed Poetry

Jim Jarmusch is one of my favorite directors, and Dead Man is probably the greatest work he has ever done. Very rarely does a film come alive with a sense of poetry. The only other film I can compare it to would be Wim Wenders' Wings Of Desire. The film moves like a dream, floating and spinning around you. Neil Young's electric score churns like a ghost train and pushes the film farther. There isn't one performance that is wrong, nor is there ever a false moment. From start to finish this film pulls you into it's dream land, and carries you along on clouds until the finish.