MovieChat Forums > Night on Earth (1991) Discussion > Are these conversations wierd like in co...

Are these conversations wierd like in coffee and ciggarettes?

posted 17 years ago by take_exit3
5 replies | jump to latest

I love watching people have interesting conversations in movies, so this movie sounds right up my alley. But I was thinking the same thing when I picked up coffee and ciggarettes but I was dissapointed with that movie. MOst of the conversations in that seemed pointless and un interesting with no real substance to them. So I was wondering if this is the same way that Jarmuch went about making this film. Or is this one actually meaningful and interesting?

[–] strawdawg 17 years ago

You are right about Coffee and Cigarettes. Pretty uninteresting conversations about nothing at all starring a bunch of really hip actors and musicians. It was a big letdown for me and not at all like Night On Earth. NOE is full of interesting characters of all different backgrounds who just happen to share cab rides. It is very interesting to see these people relate to each other. I didn't want the movie to end. Rent it. The best $5 you'll ever spend in my opinion.

give me a stage where this bull here can rage and though I can fight I'd much rather recite.

[–] IpsaThis 17 years ago

I completely agree. Each conversation in Night on Earth paints interesting characters with interesting backgrounds. In Coffee and Cigarettes, no one has anything to say, they just sit still and stare at each other (which was maybe the point of the movie? I don't know). They are very different films. This one is great.

[–] The_Ozma 17 years ago

I've decided that coffee and cigarettes was one of the worst movies ever made and have since decided I'd never watch another movie by Jim Jarmusch. However, being a huge fan of The Criterion Collection I figured I would give him another chance since they released Night On Earth. The story sounds interesting and hopefully it was better executed than coffee and cigarettes.

[–] space_base 17 years ago

Well, I watched Broken Flowers by Jarmusch and decided to never watch a Jarmusch film again. I watched Ghost Dog on TV and loved it, so I decided to give him another chance. I bought Coffee and Cigarettes, and though I liked the film overall, only half the segments were worth watching. Like the above poster, I'm a huge fan of the Criterion Collection and decided to blind buy Night on earth(which I was nervous about). It instantly became one of my favorite films and I really didn't want it to end. I then watched Stranger than Paradise, Down by Law, Dead Man, and Mystery Train, and loved them all. Jim Jarmusch is now one of my favorite directors. But I still believe that none of his work comes close to Night on Earth, which is a masterpiece and one of the most pitch-perfect movies ever made.

[–] jessonderskov 17 years ago

As an undescribeable fan of Jarmusch, I have learned not to argue to much with everybody about the content. It´s the same thing with Benigni´s and Kaurismäki´s films. The "underground" style is so special and not for everybody. I guess you love it or you don´t like it at all.

I watched NOE in 1991 (open air in Hamburg with 20.000 people)and several times again. Each time it got better. Perhaps a good idea to watch it a 2nd time. Please consider the talent of making something like this with just some (strong) characters and the real world. NO stuio recording at all. NO bloody violence. NO jewelery, million $ families, neverending high society etc.

This is the ultimate non Hollywood film ideologi. Try "Down by law" and "Mystery train" as well as Beningni´s "La tigre e la neve" or Kaurismäki´s "La vie de Bohème". Important is that you let them have their own style. Please don´t compare them with the main stream.