Review of Paterson (2016) by Dawdlingpoet — 24 Nov 2021

This is very much an arty film - its like a love letter to poetry and its also very much centered on mundanity, on the local area of the titular character, Paterson, the issues found at his workplace and how certain events can have an effect on them. I won't say a great deal, plot wise, as I'm not sure quite what I could say that would entirely make it make sense, frankly - its certainly a quirky film. I liked the moments where Patersons partner, Laura (played well by Golshifteh Farahani) is shown being creative at home, getting satisfaction from perhaps seemingly basic household tasks. I liked the dog, Marvin - he's a cute English Bulldog who features in a few scenes. I wouldn't say this is a great film - I liked it in one way and in another way it felt a bit too pretentious in a way. I suppose its typical Jim Jarmusch fare really. Oh and also, I did like that when Paterson gives voice over/narrative reading out the various poems he has in his mind, said lines appear on screen - some are more thoughtful, perhaps, than others. Its a relatively interesting film, a little bland/quirky perhaps in a not brilliant way but in another way its fairly good, so I'm giving it a 7 out of 10 rating, for the more poignant and touching lines of poetry. There aren't too many films that feature a main character keen on expressing him through poetry and keeping it to himself for the most part and I myself do (or certainly did) write poetry every now and then, so I could somewhat relate to that aspect.

If it sounds of interest, then its probably worth a watch, especially for fans of Adam Driver, who plays the main (titular) character but it is also a bit of an acquired taste perhaps - certainly if your looking for a big laugh type comedy or an exciting watch, then this may well disappoint. I leave it to you to decide if this is for you or not.