Review of Johnny Berlin (2005) by J D — 28 Mar 2012

There's nothing simpler than Johnny Berlin's take on life. Johnny is a porter on a newly refurbished long haul train where for eight months he's been the "maid-man" looking after passengers who we never actually really get to see. It's almost as if Johnny is aboard some form of ghost-ship, destined to walk the corridors like Jack Nicholson in The Shining. In fact, Johnny does bear some resemblance to the Jackster and sometimes lets out the odd off-balance observation which does cock the eyebrow. His name isn't even "Berlin"- that's the name of the train car he lives in but for now, that's his name.

The film itself is structured like one long rambling conversation which gives it such a great personality and you can't help getting the feeling that it's just you and him. There's a slight feeling though that something is buried deep within this character (good or bad we're not sure) but this doc has a real warmth and a style that celebrates the "everyman" and highlights the fact that poetry exists everywhere. Executive produced by REM's Michael Stipe you don't see many films like this and for doc lovers there's something really different and enormously satisfying here.