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Acid western

Dead Man

Year
1995
Director
Jim Jarmusch
Length
121 minCriterion 4K restoration Version sources ↓

A timid accountant travels west, becomes an outlaw by accident, and drifts toward a death he barely understands.

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Language
English
StrangeBleak Approachable · Moderate Acid western
Original illustration: An engraved cedar forest with a distant steam train, accounting ledger and travelling hat beneath Dead Man lettering.

Image: Monocurator · source · Original Monocurator artwork

What to expect

Jarmusch empties the western journey of heroic certainty. Robby Müller’s black-and-white landscapes, Neil Young’s spare guitar, and the film’s episodic encounters turn travel into a darkly comic passage between identities.

How to ease in

Accept the stops as the structure. The film repeats violence and absurdity while Nobody’s guidance slowly gives William Blake’s journey a different frame.

Heads-up

A quick, non-exhaustive note Contains gun violence, racism, sexual violence references, cannibalism references, death, and racial stereotypes used within a critical western framework.
Momo's Note May contain spoilers Who is Momo? →
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I like how the landscape refuses to confirm the story William has heard about the West or himself. Every step strips away another borrowed role.

— Momo

Momo thinking about this film

Credits & versions

Version map

Criterion 4K restoration 121 min · restoration Criterion lists its director-approved 4K restoration at 121 minutes. The listing gives whole minutes, not a measured duration in seconds. Source: Criterion — Dead Man Runtime reference · Checked 2026-09-24

Sources for the facts

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