Ghost Dog: the Way of the Samurai

Ghost Dog, a loner who lives in a ramshackle rooftop eyrie with only his loft of carrier pigeons to keep him company, is in thrall to a Mob henchman who saved his life years ago, in return for which he performs an occasional hit. Despite these activities, Ghost Dog is a spiritual type: himself African-American but fascinated by all things Japanese, he sees himself as a latter-day samurai, cleaving to an ancient philosophical ethos which, he realises, is rapidly becoming obsolete. When a contact goes awry, the small-time and comically inept Mafia family which has been hiring him determines he must die. Jarmusch creates a vivid portrait of a multi-ethnic, multilingual city full of oddballs each pursuing their individual obsession.