Paterson Blu-ray Review
PATERSON is one of those rare films that virtually nothing happens in it. There are no car chases, explosions, arguments or long speeches that seem to benefit only the actors. This is the beauty of this film. It feels like real life. It draws you in and thereby you can relate to the characters more. This is a wonderful achievement for Director/Screenwriter Jim Jarmusch.
PATERSON follows the life of bus driver Paterson (Adam Driver) who lives in Paterson, New Jersey. The film remarkably doesn’t dwell too much on that name fact which is par for the course for this understated film. Paterson lives with his loving wife Laura (Golshifteh Farahani) and their English bulldog Marvin. Laura has a strong affection for the colors of black and white. She decorates their home with primarily those colors.
Paterson usually wakes up at the same time every morning without an alarm clock. He kisses his wife and dutifully goes to work. He converses every day with a co-worker named Donny (Rizwan Manji), who tells him his tales of woes in his life. Jarmusch does a great job with these conversations. Everyone has someone in their life who likes to tell them their problems and you just nod and sympathize with them. Paterson knows exactly what Donny will say when he asks him how he is doing and still does it. He either does this out of duty, politeness or even friendship. He may even do this to make him feel like his life is better. It is almost old hat for him to ask.
Paterson drives his bus with no fanfare. He does his job with no fuss or muss. He eavesdrops on the conversations behind him. Paterson has been home to or been a part of many famous people over the years such as Lou Costello, Allen Ginsberg, Alexander Hamilton and the poet William Carlos Williams who wrote a collection of poems about the city. One day two kids are talking about the boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter who was arrested in Paterson. Another day two guys are sharing their thoughts with each other on potential romantic entanglements with women. And yet another day, a young guy and girl are discussing an anarchist who lived in Paterson a century before. Paterson soaks this all on in. He is an observer of people and their ways. He is also an observer of his surroundings. He is a poet like Williams and he writes down his poems every day in his special book (The poems were provided by Ron Padgett).
When he gets home, he is always greeted with warmth by his wife Laura. She is excited about selling her cupcakes at the farmer’s market on the weekend. She also dreams of being a country music star and orders a guitar from Esteban that she thinks might take her to the top. Paterson is encouraging and doesn’t shoot down her dreams. She believes his poems are destined to be published. Jarmusch richly explores the relationship between these two people. He doesn’t have to create drama for them to make the movie more interesting. At night, Paterson walks the dog and goes to his local bar. He gets to meet people along the way such as a rapper in a Laundromat. At the bar he converses with the bar owner Doc (Barry Shabaka Henley) and struggling couple Everett (William Jackson Harper) and Marie (Chasten Harmon). Doc takes great pride in the history of the city. He has pictures of luminaries on his wall. There is a gentle familiarity with these scenes. Jarmusch allows them to breathe and take hold. There’s not a rush to get to the next line. You get the sense that these people know each other well and are happy in their company.
Jarmusch has created a wholly original and wholly real work here. He has great affection for the characters and it shows. This may bore people who want a lot of stuff happening in their movies. I would disagree with them. It kept me fully engaged. All of the actors do fine work. Adam Driver was quite strong in his portrayal. I just loved how he interacted with the other actors and how much his subtle facial expressions showed what his character was thinking. This is a beautiful movie about love, hope and dreams. It should not be missed.
BLU-RAY REVIEW
Video: The city of Paterson, NJ is beautifully captured. The lighting is impeccably done.
Audio: There were times where I did have trouble hearing the characters. Otherwise the sound was mostly solid.
I felt disappointment that there weren’t any special features. It would have been nice of having a making of segment or commentary from the director or Driver.