Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)
Now Playing
Movie/TV News
My Movies
DVD/Video
IMDbTV
Message Boards
Showtimes & Tickets
IMDbPro
IMDb Resume
Login | Register
Home |
Top Movies |
Photos |
Independent Film |
GameBase |
Browse |
Help
All
Titles
- TV Episodes
My Movies
Names
Companies
Keywords
Characters
Quotes
Bios
Plots
more |
tips
SHOP GHOST DOG...
Amazon.com
Amazon.ca
Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.de
Amazon.fr
DVDVHSCDAllDownload
DVDVHSCDAll
Rent
DVDVHSCDAll
DVDVHSCDAll
DVDVHSCDAll
IMDb >
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)
Quicklinks
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv scheduletaglinestrailerspostersuser commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsrecommendationsmessage boardplot summaryplot keywordsmemorable quotestriviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsmovie connectionsmerchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specsDVD detailsliterature listingsnews articlesshowtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographs
Top Links
-trailers
-full cast and crew
-trivia
-official sites
-memorable quotes
Overview
main details
-combined details
-full cast and crew
-company credits
-tv schedule
Promotional
-taglines
-trailers
-posters
-photo gallery
Awards & Reviews
-user comments
-external reviews
-newsgroup reviews
-awards
-user ratings
-recommendations
-message board
Plot & Quotes
-plot summary
-plot keywords
-Amazon.com summary
-memorable quotes
Fun Stuff
-trivia
-goofs
-soundtrack listing
-crazy credits
-alternate versions
-movie connections
-FAQ
Other Info
-merchandising links
-box office/business
-release dates
-filming locations
-technical specs
-laserdisc details
-DVD details
-literature listings
-news articles
External Links
-showtimes
-official sites
-miscellaneous
-photographs
-sound clips
-video clips
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)
advertisement
photos
board
trailer
details
Register or login to rate this title
User Rating:
7.4/10
(20,515 votes)
more
Director:
Jim Jarmusch
Writer:
Jim Jarmusch (written by)
Release Date:
6 October 1999 (France)
more
Genre:
Crime / Drama / Thriller more
Tagline:
All assassins live beyond the law... only one follows the code more
Plot Outline:
An African American mafia hit man who models himself after the samurai of old finds himself targeted for death by the mob. more
Plot Keywords:
Pigeon
/
Ice Cream
/
Mafia
/
Samurai
/
Katana Sword
more
Awards:
5 nominations
more
User Comments:
Interesting and deep, but not as deep as it tries to be
more
(Cast overview, first billed only)Forest Whitaker ... Ghost DogJohn Tormey ... LouieCliff Gorman ... Sonny ValerioDennis Liu ... Chinese Restaurant OwnerFrank Minucci ... Big AngieRichard Portnow ... Handsome FrankTricia Vessey ... Louise VargoHenry Silva ... Ray VargoGene Ruffini ... Old ConsigliereFrank Adonis ... Valerio's BodyguardVictor Argo ... VinnyDamon Whitaker ... Young Ghost DogKenny Guay ... Boy in WindowVince Viverito ... Johnny MoriniGano Grills ... Gangsta in Redmore
Also Known As:Ghost Dog - Der Weg des Samurai (Germany) Ghost Dog, la voie du samouraï (France)
more
MPAA:
Rated R for strong violence and language.
Runtime:
116 min
Country:
France / Germany / USA / Japan
Language:
English / French
Color:
Color (DeLuxe)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital
Certification:
Australia:MA/ Iceland:16/ Argentina:16/ Canada:14A/ Chile:18/ Finland:K-16/ France:U/ Germany:16/ Netherlands:16/ New Zealand:R16/ Norway:15/ Peru:14/ Sweden:15/ Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) / Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) / UK:15/ USA:R
Filming Locations:
Jersey City, New Jersey, USA
more
MOVIEmeter:
63% since last week
why?
Company:
Pandora Filmproduktion
more
Trivia:
The club that Ghost Dog drives by before he steals his new clothes is called "Liquid Sword". "Liquid Swords" is the name of Genius/GZA's second album, which was produced by The RZA, who also provided the original score for the film.
more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: When Louie is saving Ghost Dog from the thugs beating him up, he shoots the pistol that he has, but the slide does not move to eject the spent cartridge when he fires the gun.
more
Quotes:
Ghost Dog:
When one has made a decision to kill a person, even if it will be very difficult to succeed by advancing straight ahead, it will not do to think about doing it in a long, roundabout way. One's heart may slacken, he may miss his chance, and by and large there will be no success. The Way of the Samurai is one of immediacy, and it is best to dash in headlong.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Coffee and Cigarettes (2003)
more
Soundtrack:
Ice-Cream
more
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
(Comment on this title)
12 out of 16 people found the following comment useful:-
Interesting and deep, but not as deep as it tries to be, 23 June 2004
Author:
Grann-Bach (Grann-Bach@jubii.dk) from Denmark
This is a great film; it has pretty much everything a great film needs: a
great score, great actors, great performances, etc. The film revolves around
Ghost Dog, perfectly portrayed by Forest Whitaker. He is a assassin who
lives by the code of the Samurai. Apart from him, we also follow the fate of
several mafia men(though nowhere near as intimately as we follow Ghost Dog).
These two very different groups, Samurai and mafia, are both depicted
reasonably well, giving us insight to how the groups work, and, more
importantly, their code. Both groups live and die by the code, and this is
probably the most important thing in the movie, and it's shown with respect
with both Samurai and mafia; I'm not entirely sure that it's correct all the
way through, but that's not what's most important, anyway. The film has
reasonably little action, but it's not supposed to be an action film, by any
means. It's fairly slow throughout the film, but it never really bores you
to the point of not watching any more; I've seen the film at least five
times now, so believe me, I know. The film is very stylized and cool
throughout, which definitely has some part in keeping you interested, but
the theme and story/plot plays a bigger part, I think. The plot is pretty
good, and though it keeps a fairly slow pace throughout the film, it also
keeps your interest for the entire duration of the film. The acting is all
good, though not everyone pulls off as excellent a performance as Whitaker.
Isaach De Bankolé portrays Ghost Dog's best friend, and he does gives a
great performance. So does Camille Winbush, who portrays a girl who Ghost
Dog befriends and discusses books with. The characters are well-written
and(mostly) credible. I'm not entirely sure that the film does provide a
totally correct version of the Code of the Samurai. The soundtrack is great;
it's made by the hip-hop artist RZA, but most of it will be enjoyable to
people who aren't into hip-hop. Also, I guess it's more of a score than a
soundtrack; there isn't any time where the music feels out of place in a
scene. All in all, a great film, but not for all tastes. Don't go in
expecting an action film; don't go in expecting a very deep an entirely
intellectual film; don't go in expecting a regular movie; go in expecting to
see a decent(if not good) representation of both the mafia code and the
Samurai code. I've heard some people describe the ending as an anti-climax;
I don't know what they were expecting... I won't say that I saw it coming,
but I wasn't disappointed when it happened. It had to end it, and I think
the director, Jim Jarmusch made a good decision on that. I recommend this
film to people with an interest in Samurai, fans of Jarmusch and people
looking for a reasonably deep film. I don't recommend this to fans of action
movies, as there's fairly little action in the film. No matter who you are,
if you're going to see this film, make sure you have the patience for it;
it's worth sitting through the two reasonably slow hours for.
8/10
Was the above comment useful to you?
more
Discuss this title with other users on IMDb message board for Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Outstanding
Nick_Hanson
should a great man lay down his life in the service of a lesser man?
jarmyta
The Blackequivalent to 'Grand Theft Auto' fantasies?
NeroKalem
*beep*
corybracken
are you serious??
nvp12345
Style over substance? Or just bad editing?
Dalt1
more
If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
Léon
Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Romeo Must Die
A Bronx Tale
First Blood
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Add a recommendation |
Show more recommendations
You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' buttonwill take you through a step-by-step process.
Home | Search | Now Playing | News | My Movies | Games | Boards | Help | US Movie Showtimes | Top 250 | Register | RecommendationsBox Office | Index | Trailers |
Jobs | IMDbPro.com - Free Trial | IMDb Resume
Copyright © 1990-2007 Internet Movie Database Inc.
Terms and Privacy Policy under which this service is provided to you.
An company.
Advertise on IMDb.
License our content.
Back to Movie index