.gif)
Down by Law (film)
Encyclopedia
Down by Law is a 1986 black-and-white
independent film
written and directed by Jim Jarmusch
. It stars Tom Waits
, John Lurie
, and Roberto Benigni
.
The film centers on the arrest, incarceration, and escape from jail
of three men. It discards jailbreak film conventions by focusing on the interaction between the convicts rather than on the mechanics of the escape. A key element in the film is Robby Müller
's slow-moving camerawork, which captures the architecture of New Orleans
and the Louisiana
bayou
to which the cellmates escape.
, and Jack (Lurie), a pimp
, have been set up, neither having committed the crime for which they have been arrested. Their cellmate Bob (Benigni), an Italian tourist who understands minimal English, was imprisoned for manslaughter
.
Zack and Jack soon come to blows and thereafter avoid speaking to each other. Bob has an irrepressible need for conversation. He hatches a plan to escape, and before long the three are on the run through the swamp surrounding the prison. Hopelessly lost and with a simmering hatred between Jack and Zack almost causing the party to split up, they are brought together by Bob's ability to provide food. The trio eventually chance across a house in the forest, the residence of Nicoletta (Braschi). Bob and Nicoletta instantly fall in love, and Bob decides to stay with her in the forest. Zack and Jack go their separate ways—an unspoken, begrudging friendship hanging between them as they part.
, who subsequently worked with Jarmusch on Mystery Train
(1989), Dead Man
(1995), and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
(1999). The film stars musician Tom Waits
, along with Jarmusch regulars John Lurie
and Roberto Benigni
. Benigni and Nicoletta Braschi
, whose characters fell in love in the movie, later got married in real life. The music for the film was written by Lurie, and the songs "Jockey Full of Bourbon" and "Tango Till They're Sore" from Waits' Rain Dogs
album are also featured.
. It was dedicated to Pascale Ogier
and Enzo Ungari.
The film has an 88% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes
.
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
independent film
Independent film
An independent film, or indie film, is a professional film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly or completely outside of the major film studio system. In addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies, independent films are also produced...
written and directed by Jim Jarmusch
Jim Jarmusch
James R. "Jim" Jarmusch is an American independent film director, screenwriter, actor, producer, editor and composer. Jarmusch has been a major proponent of independent cinema, particularly during the 1980s and 1990s.-Early life:...
. It stars Tom Waits
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
, John Lurie
John Lurie
John Lurie is an American actor, musician, painter and producer. He is co-founder of The Lounge Lizards, a jazz ensemble. Lurie has acted in 19 films including Stranger than Paradise and Down by Law, composed and performed music for 20 television and film works, and he produced and starred in...
, and Roberto Benigni
Roberto Benigni
Roberto Remigio Benigni, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI is an Italian actor, comedian, screenwriter and director of film, theatre and television.- Early years :...
.
The film centers on the arrest, incarceration, and escape from jail
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
of three men. It discards jailbreak film conventions by focusing on the interaction between the convicts rather than on the mechanics of the escape. A key element in the film is Robby Müller
Robby Müller
Robby Müller is a cinematographer whose name is most often associated with film director Wim Wenders.-Life and work:...
's slow-moving camerawork, which captures the architecture of New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
and the Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
bayou
Bayou
A bayou is an American term for a body of water typically found in flat, low-lying areas, and can refer either to an extremely slow-moving stream or river , or to a marshy lake or wetland. The name "bayou" can also refer to creeks that see level changes due to tides and hold brackish water which...
to which the cellmates escape.
Plot summary
Three men, previously unknown to each other, are arrested in New Orleans and placed in the same cell. Both Zack (Waits), a disc jockeyDisc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
, and Jack (Lurie), a pimp
Pimp
A pimp is an agent for prostitutes who collects part of their earnings. The pimp may receive this money in return for advertising services, physical protection, or for providing a location where she may engage clients...
, have been set up, neither having committed the crime for which they have been arrested. Their cellmate Bob (Benigni), an Italian tourist who understands minimal English, was imprisoned for manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
.
Zack and Jack soon come to blows and thereafter avoid speaking to each other. Bob has an irrepressible need for conversation. He hatches a plan to escape, and before long the three are on the run through the swamp surrounding the prison. Hopelessly lost and with a simmering hatred between Jack and Zack almost causing the party to split up, they are brought together by Bob's ability to provide food. The trio eventually chance across a house in the forest, the residence of Nicoletta (Braschi). Bob and Nicoletta instantly fall in love, and Bob decides to stay with her in the forest. Zack and Jack go their separate ways—an unspoken, begrudging friendship hanging between them as they part.
Cast
- Tom WaitsTom WaitsThomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
as Zack - John LurieJohn LurieJohn Lurie is an American actor, musician, painter and producer. He is co-founder of The Lounge Lizards, a jazz ensemble. Lurie has acted in 19 films including Stranger than Paradise and Down by Law, composed and performed music for 20 television and film works, and he produced and starred in...
as Jack - Roberto BenigniRoberto BenigniRoberto Remigio Benigni, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI is an Italian actor, comedian, screenwriter and director of film, theatre and television.- Early years :...
as Roberto - Nicoletta BraschiNicoletta BraschiNicoletta Braschi is an Italian actress and producer, best known for her work with her husband, actor and director Roberto Benigni....
as Nicoletta - Ellen BarkinEllen BarkinEllen Barkin is an American film, television and theatre actress.-Early life:She was born Ellen Rona Barkin in Bronx, a borough of New York City, New York, the daughter of Evelyn , a hospital administrator who worked at Jamaica Hospital, and Sol Barkin, a chemical salesman...
as Laurette - Billie Neal as Bobbie
- Rockets RedglareRockets RedglareRockets Redglare was an American character actor and stand-up comedian. He appeared in over 30 films in the 1980s and 1990s, including a number of independent films, and mainstream films such as After Hours and Desperately Seeking Susan .-Early life:Born Michael Morra in New York City to a...
as Gig - Vernel BagnerisVernel BagnerisVernel Martin Bagneris , playwright, actor, director, singer, and dancer, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the third child of Gloria Diaz Bagneris and Lawrence Bagneris Sr. Bagneris’s mother was a housewife and deeply religious woman who “quietly outclassed most people,” and his father was a...
as Preston - Timothea as Julie
- L.C. Drane as L.C.
- Joy N. Houck, Jr.Joy N. Houck, Jr.Joy Newton Houck, Jr. was an American actor, screenwriter and B-movie director who is probably best known for Creature from Black Lake, one of the many Bigfoot horror movies of the 70s. His father, Joy M...
as Detective Mandino - Carrie Lindsoe as Young Girl
- Ralph Joseph as Detective
- Richard Boes as Detective
- Dave Petitjean as Cajun Detective
Production
The cinematography is by Robby MüllerRobby Müller
Robby Müller is a cinematographer whose name is most often associated with film director Wim Wenders.-Life and work:...
, who subsequently worked with Jarmusch on Mystery Train
Mystery Train (film)
Mystery Train is a 1989 independent anthology film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch and set in Memphis, Tennessee. The film comprises a triptych of stories involving foreign protagonists unfolding over the course of the same night...
(1989), Dead Man
Dead Man
Dead Man is a 1995 American Western film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. It stars Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Billy Bob Thornton, Iggy Pop, Crispin Glover, John Hurt, Michael Wincott, Lance Henriksen, and Robert Mitchum . The film, dubbed an "Acid Western" by its director, includes twisted...
(1995), and Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is a 1999 American crime action film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. Forest Whitaker stars as the title character, the mysterious "Ghost Dog", a hitman in the employ of the Mafia, who follows the ancient code of the samurai as outlined in the book of Yamamoto...
(1999). The film stars musician Tom Waits
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
, along with Jarmusch regulars John Lurie
John Lurie
John Lurie is an American actor, musician, painter and producer. He is co-founder of The Lounge Lizards, a jazz ensemble. Lurie has acted in 19 films including Stranger than Paradise and Down by Law, composed and performed music for 20 television and film works, and he produced and starred in...
and Roberto Benigni
Roberto Benigni
Roberto Remigio Benigni, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI is an Italian actor, comedian, screenwriter and director of film, theatre and television.- Early years :...
. Benigni and Nicoletta Braschi
Nicoletta Braschi
Nicoletta Braschi is an Italian actress and producer, best known for her work with her husband, actor and director Roberto Benigni....
, whose characters fell in love in the movie, later got married in real life. The music for the film was written by Lurie, and the songs "Jockey Full of Bourbon" and "Tango Till They're Sore" from Waits' Rain Dogs
Rain Dogs
Rain Dogs is the 9th album by American singer-songwriter Tom Waits, released in August 1985 on Island Records. A loose concept album about "the urban dispossessed" of New York City, Rain Dogs is generally considered the middle album of a trilogy that includes Swordfishtrombones and Franks Wild...
album are also featured.
Release
Down by Law was entered into the 1986 Cannes Film Festival1986 Cannes Film Festival
- Jury :*Sydney Pollack*Alexandre Mnouchkine*Alexandre Trauner*Charles Aznavour*Danièle Thompson*István Szabó*Lino Brocka*Philip French*Sonia Braga*Tonino Delli Colli-Feature film competition:* After Hours by Martin Scorsese...
. It was dedicated to Pascale Ogier
Pascale Ogier
Pascale Ogier was a French actress.Born Pascale Marguerite Cécile Claude Colette Nicolas in Paris, she was the daughter of a musician father and actress Bulle Ogier. Pascale also chose an acting career, first with appearances on stage...
and Enzo Ungari.
The film has an 88% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.