Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (Widescreen)

Ghost Dog works as a hitman for Louie, who's in the mafia. The mafia bosses want Louie to have 'Handsome' Frank (a member of their mafia family) killed by someone "from the outside". Louie has Ghost Dog kill Frank. But now, since Frank was part of their family, they need to kill Ghost Dog - their own code of honour demands it, even though they were the ones who arranged the hit. But Mr. Vargo might also have an ulterior motive for wanting Ghost Dog killed. It's clear that Mr. Vargo's daughter suspects her father had Frank killed. But does Mr. Vargo know that or not? Is he being pressured by his daughter to kill Ghost Dog? I can't say for sure.

It's fascinating to see a present-day African-American man abiding by a code of honour that was intended to be followed by warriors in feudal Japan. Jarmusch says he wanted Ghost Dog to be a likeable killer. He's quiet, gentle, and kind - it's impossible not to like him. Ghost Dog is a cold-blooded murderer, but we can overlook this unseemly aspect of his character, in large part due to his various conversations with the little girl named Pearline. And even though Ghost Dog has absolutely no right to kill the bear hunters, we can't help but sympathize with the reason he kills them. It's not because they're racist, but because they're ignorant. Interestingly, Ghost Dog's code won't allow him to kill Louie (whether he wants to or not) but as we see with the hunters, the code allows Ghost Dog to kill anyone who disrespects him. Back in the day, many Japanese samurais were all too keen to kill anyone that slighted them. But I'm guessing that Ghost Dog isn't as liberal in dealing death to rude people as his Japanese predecessors were.

The "dysfunctional Italian crime family" (as Jarmusch describes it) isn't portrayed in an admirable or flattering way. They aren't overly intelligent either. They're wealthy, but don't live within their means. The family have difficulty paying rent to the owner of a Chinese restaurant, which the family use to conduct their business. It's hilarious when the guy says "I want the money tomorrow. Three months' rent. What kind of operation are you guys running here anyway?" This must be the first movie where we see the mafia (who we usually think of as being fabulously wealthy) having a hard time making ends meet. They come across as losers. No one shows them respect, which is in stark contrast to Ghost Dog. They're incompetent and inept. They're past their prime, like old dinosaurs that have somehow survived the ice age. When one mobster says "He's sending us out the old way," it indicates that he's glad Ghost Dog is wiping out the family. That mobster would rather see the family go out in a blaze of glory, rather than continue their slide into obscurity and meaninglessness. I should say that he would certainly prefer to be ALIVE rather than dead, but that's the positive spin the mobster puts on his own imminent death. The message I get from this movie is that those who stubbornly cling to tradition, and refuse to adapt to modern times, will eventually fall by the wayside, and ultimately into oblivion. I doubt that's what Jarmusch is trying to say, but that's what I like to think he's saying.

There's some really cool parts in this movie, like when Ghost Dog is cleaning his handguns. And everytime that Ghost Dog kills someone. And how Ghost Dog handcrafted his own silencers. And how Ghost Dog waves his gun in the air (like a sword) right before sliding it back into its holster. And I love when Ghost Dog's driving in the fancy cars (all of which are stolen) while listening to rap music, and taking in the sights of the city - sort of like a little ritual he does before he assassinates someone. And I love the movie's surprise ending.

There's lots of hilarious scenes in this movie, like when the guy tries to catch the carrier pigeon, which is the only means Louie has to communicate with Ghost Dog. And when the kid is throwing toys at the mobsters. And when a mugger gets kicked in the chops. And when Louie is questioned about Ghost Dog. And when the Haitian ice cream vendor is raving (in French) about a report he heard on the radio, with some hilarious music emanating from his ice cream truck. And whenever Ghost Dog has a conversation with Raymond. And when the mobsters (who have never seen Ghost Dog) are searching for Ghost Dog. And every run-in Ghost Dog has with Louie ends on an incredibly hilarious note. And it's hilarious how Sonny's car can't fit in his own garage.

The RZA's haunting background music for this movie suits it perfectly. The music sounds beautiful (in a way) when accompanied by the sight of Ghost Dog practicing the martial arts on his roof. The RZA himself appears near the end of the movie, dressed in camouflage. The end credits say the RZA portrays a samurai. And interestingly, it seems as though Pearline is destined to become a samurai as well.

Ghost Dog is a seeker, studying the Hagakure (The Code of the Samurai). Throughout the film, he reads passages from the Hagakure that highlight his own personal code. Passages like, "Each day a samurai should contemplate his own death and consider various ways of dying, from being torn apart in the jaws of a wild beast, to falling from thousand foot cliffs, and during some part of the day, the samurai should consider himself dead."

Ghost Dog's "best friend" is a Haitian ice cream vendor (Isaac DeBankole), despite the fact that Whitaker's character understands no French and the ice cream vendor doesn't understand English. His only other real human contact is with a young girl, maybe 10 years old, named Pearline (Camille Winbush).

Lou contacts Ghost Dog via carrier pigeon and pays him for his contract killings once a year...Lou doesn't know anything else about his contract killer, not his given name, not even where he lives. This becomes the fulcrum for some very dark comedy.

When a hit goes awry and Lou's associates look to eliminate Ghost Dog, Lou's inability to provide details makes for some darkly comedic confrontations. Veteran screen villain Henry Silva is cold and bizarre as mob boss Ray Vargo, while Cliff Gorman (Sonny Valerio) provides a comic absurdity (a mafia hit man who's also a rap aficionado) rivaled only by the communication between Ghost Dog and the ice cream vendor that transcends language.

Much of the background score is provided by the Staten Island based rap group, Wu Tang Clan, which gives it a real gritty, streety feel. Much of the film moves at a crawl and you get the impression that Forrest Whitaker wanted to state something more, that just doesn't translate onto film.

The story is dark and in spots absurdly ridiculous (the mobsters all seem obsessed with old cartoons), but it doesn't glorify violence the way many gangster flicks do. Still, it leaves you looking for more.

I've thought about this and part of it may be that Ghost Dog seems to be a reluctant hero in much the same vein as Brandon Lee's The Crow or Sam Rami's Darkman, but seems to fall a little short, but that may be an illusion. Both Darkman and The Crow are offered up as supernatural creatures (The Crow returns from the dead for vengeance and Darkman is supposedly bestowed with an almost infinite pain threshold due to nerve damage), while Ghost Dog is a living, bleeding, loner, so he can't be compared to those kind of protagonists.

The ending of this film, like that of Shyamalan's Unbreakable will probably leave many westerners cold. Here it seems almost taboo when good fails to triumph outright over evil.

I liked this film, even though I felt it reached for more than it could deliver, just as I liked Unbreakable (that may give you a clue as to whether this is your kind of film), but I'd recommend it with four stars out of five. If it had delivered all that it reached for, it would've been a sure fire five!