Mystery Train

I went back to work today after my week's vacation.

This evening I watched the movie Mystery Train, directed by Jim Jarmusch.  It consists of three separate but linked stories set over the same 24 hour period in Memphis, connected by a run-down hotel, a single gun shot and the legacy of Elvis Presley:  A teenage Japanese couple take a rock 'n'roll pilgrimage, an Italian widow is forced to spend 24 hours in Memphis after an unscheduled layover, and a hapless barber is unwittingly involved in a liquor store robbery by his aggressive drunk British brother-in-law.  It's a slow, melancholy but often very funny movie although it's comedy of the most deadpan sort.  It's a strangely haunting film with a real late night feel to it. It has a number of prominent musicians in the cast:  Screamin' Jay Hawkins as the hotel's night clerk, Joe Strummer (lead singer of The Clash) as the violent, drunk Brit, and Tom Waits as a late-night DJ.

Life on the Road

I went out this afternoon and got my groceries for the coming week. I also went out later and got a couple of DVDs: Fantomas, collecting a French movie serial from 1913 to 1914, and the movie Mystery Train.

I went up to the Cineworld cinema and saw David Brent: Life on the Road, directed by Ricky Gervais. It involves Ricky Gervais reprising David Brent (from the British version of The Office) as he goes on tour with his band Forgone Conclusion, and proceeds to bemuse, insult or annoy everyone he comes into contact with. It's funny enough. If you like Ricky Gervais or The Office, then you'll be familiar with the humour.