ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE [2013]

There are no sparkly bloodsuckers to be seen in director Jim Jarmusch's oddball vampire love story Only Lovers Left Alive.
With it's subtle sense of humor, love for music, wicked fashion sense, vast knowledge of literature, claustrophobic photography and some particularly fantastic performances from Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton, Jarmusch crafts a refreshing take on the vampire genre.  It's gloomy but manages a sly smirk on it's face throughout which makes for a delightful experience that any fan of the actors and director will revel in.

4 sunglasses out of 5

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)

Ghost Dog is a loner but he’s well-respected. He lives in a modern American city but follows an ancient Samurai code as outlined in Yamamoto Tsunetomo's Hagakure. The code guides him and shapes his morality in his role as a perfect assassin for the Mafia.
The gangsters lives are empty and wasteful. In contrast, Ghost Dog's life is filled with meaning and purpose. It's an unusual, romanticised one that he's created himself, but that doesn't make it any less noble.
Forest Whitaker can help make an average film good. Likewise, he can make a great film like Jarmusch’s GD even more exceptional.
It’s not essential but some knowledge of chanbara cinema will greatly increase your understanding of many aspects of the story.

4½ meditations out of 5