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Plot

Jim Jarmusch follows his groundbreaking Stranger Than Paradise with another rambling, character-driven film with a twisted sense of humor. Set in a seedy New Orleans summer, Down By Law details the meeting of three unlikely convicts and their just as unlikely escape. Zack (Tom Waits) is an out-of-work DJ who is accused of murder when a body is found in the trunk of a stolen car he was hired to drive across town. Jack (John Lurie) is a pimp set up for a fall by a competitor. These two sullen souls are locked in a cell with Roberto (Roberto Benigni), a cheerful Italian immigrant who happens to have killed a man. The chemistry between the members of this loosely bound "team" is fascinating: Zack and Jack are forever laughing at Roberto, yet they rely on his energy and good will to escape their dire situation. The three mismatched miscreants eventually bust out of jail and head into the Louisiana bayous. Tired and hungry, they separate to search for food: Waits goes one way, Lurie another, and the frightened Benigni decides to risk stepping into a ramshackle diner. Somehow or other, he winds up in the arms of gorgeous Italian girl Nicoletta Braschi -- and is even able to provide new clothes and escape routes for his astonished comrades!
MPAA Rating:
R
Genre(s):
Comedy
Run Time:
107min.
Theatrical Release Date:
04/15/1993
DVD Release Date:
10/22/2002
Status:
In Theaters
Distributor(s):
Island Pictures
Director(s):
Jim Jarmusch
Starring:
Tom Waits , John Lurie , Roberto Benigni , Nicoletta Braschi , Ellen Barkin
Themes:
Down on Their Luck,Flight of the Innocent,Escape From Prison,Miscarriage of Justice
Tone:
Atmospheric,Deadpan,Easygoing,Goofy,Lyrical,Moody,Stylized
Keywords:
DJ,Italian [nationality],bayou,captive,diner,escape,on-the-road,on-the-run,pimp,prison
Country of Origin:
USA (09-20-1986)
Language:
English