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      Down by Law

      R Released Sep 7, 1986 1 hr. 46 min. Comedy List
      88% 32 Reviews Tomatometer 93% 10,000+ Ratings Audience Score A disc jockey (Tom Waits), a pimp (John Lurie) and an Italian tourist (Roberto Benigni) escape from jail in New Orleans. Read More Read Less

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      Down by Law

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      Critics Consensus

      Funny, original, and thoroughly cinematic, Down by Law represents writer-director Jim Jarmusch at his most ingratiating and evocative.

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      Audience Reviews

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      Otaki Y 終始、空間全域が満遍に映る引きのショットで、映像が物語を語る際に無駄なく洗練らせている Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/25/24 Full Review Wayne K Much like Paul Thomas Anderson or Wes Anderon, Jim Jarmusch is a very unique voice in the cinematic world. His style of writing and presentation aren't for everyone, and you'll find out very quickly which side of the fence you fall on. Down By Law is more about creating a vibe than it is about telling a story, and I think that's what puts a lot of people off. Slow moving narratives are a hard thing to get right, and you risk alienating your audience if you do don't have something to hook them in. Fortunately, what DBL lacks on the story front, it makes up for in the character department. By spending so much time with only 3 individuals, following them through a series of events, we get to know them well and experience the dynamic between them. By the end we feel like we've been on the (mis)adventure with them, like we're one of the group. The film can take a long time to make it's point, but that feeling starts to fade the more the film goes on, because we grow more comfortable with the film's style and approach. I can't say it's a film I'd watch again, as it's pace would grate on you the more times you see it, but as a relative newbie to Jarmusch's work, I can't say I didn't enjoy it. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/21/24 Full Review Vito P A road trip with three criminals unfolds in an independent cinema that strives to tell stories in a simple but passionate way. Different genres blend seamlessly together, with minimal shots and in extraordinary black and white. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 11/15/23 Full Review Dave S In Down by Law, an early offering from the always interesting Jim Jarmusch, three disparate characters escape prison and find themselves on the run from authorities through a swampy Louisiana landscape. Among its virtues, Tom Waits, John Lurie, and Roberto Benigni are all great in the lead roles, the characters are nicely developed, Jarmusch proves that he knows how to frame and block a shot, and the cinematography and lighting are stunning at times. However, the acting by the secondary cast is often sketchy at best and the dialogue can be downright cringy at times. Regardless, Down by Law is worth watching to see a young filmmaker refining his skills and learning his trade. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/19/23 Full Review Logan M A classic of the crime genre that provides an intimate view of city life and raw human emotion. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/12/23 Full Review Audience Member Great film Altogether I think that the film, "Down By Law" (1986) by Jim Jarmusch featuring Tom Waits, is one of cinema's finest noir pieces, an obvious montage through the arts of it's time period, but held together at it's essence, which is the perceived voyeur's agreements with the sometimes awkwardly staggered and dragging exaggerations made by the true minds of the film. This context within context is somewhat familiar to the actors and writers whose hand at the work is seen like a stark author's stencil's dark shading on the texture of the characters at work in the movie. The exemplary effort given by the both the entire teams of the production and writing seem to fit seamlessly as though the stages were set and the actions seemed to flow out of the actors through the piece in the easiest, while at the same time, most mind-blowing orchestration through which the music plays on the rhythm of the story, and viewer. Great early attempt by Jim Jarmusch in film-making, and a true classic. Special recognition, definitely, for Roberto Benigni who was truly fun. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Down by Law

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      Critics Reviews

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      Philip Kemp Sight & Sound Down by Law seems on occasion to be soliciting our approval. Mar 27, 2020 Full Review Vadim Rizov Little White Lies Down By Law is oddly heart-warming, magnifying moments of unexpected camaraderie between kindred spirits who don't immediately ID each other as such. Rated: 4/5 Sep 11, 2014 Full Review Martin Chilton Daily Telegraph (UK) Down by Law is a delight, right down to the unexpected last scene. Rated: 5/5 Sep 9, 2014 Full Review Mike Scott Times-Picayune Playing like a noir-informed mashup of “Streetcar” and “The Defiant Ones,” director Jim Jarmusch’s prison-escape dramedy is aided enormously by the brilliant performances of John Lurie, Tom Waits and a scene-stealing Roberto Begnini. Rated: 3.5/4 Jul 25, 2023 Full Review Tom Howard NME (New Musical Express) Fellow musician John Lurie and Italian actor Roberto Benigni play his cellmates Jack and Bob, and the trio do a fine job of playing people who suck up a mutual dislike to join forces and commit an imperfect crime. Rated: 4/5 May 26, 2021 Full Review David Parkinson Radio Times Jim Jarmusch's uneven but stylish comdie noire is an astute mixture of prison picture, road movie and downbeat screwball. Rated: 4/5 Sep 12, 2014 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis A disc jockey (Tom Waits), a pimp (John Lurie) and an Italian tourist (Roberto Benigni) escape from jail in New Orleans.
      Director
      Jim Jarmusch
      Executive Producer
      Cary Brokaw, Otto Grokenberger, Russell Schwartz
      Screenwriter
      Jim Jarmusch
      Distributor
      Criterion Collection
      Production Co
      Island Pictures
      Rating
      R
      Genre
      Comedy
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Sep 7, 1986, Original
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Mar 23, 2017
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $106.5K
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