Hit and miss, but ulimately rewarding

Rating: Null/10 (16 June 2004)

Take this movie as what it is -- really just a series of short films about people's conversations over coffee and cigarettes.
In that regard, some of the shorts were more rewarding than others, with the highlights being Iggy Pop and Tom Waits, Bill Murray with RZA and GZA and Alfred Molina and Steve Coogans. The Tesla Coil episode with the White Stripes was pretty funny, but I don't think Meg White can act very well. Steve Buscemi was hilarious in his short, but I didn't like the point of the story. Cate Blanchette's dual role was interesting, but got boring after a while.
But really, these are just conversations and I think that's what makes this film original. There's no plot to speak of, just snapshots of life as it is. In fact, the one that hit home the most for me was the two friends who didn't talk about anything. It shows how the art of conversation has been lost... one friend just wants to see his old buddy, but the other friend thinks there has to be an ulterior motive. It's a great statement on the nature of society, and overall a great snap shot of what "Coffee and Cigarettes" is all about, the lost art of conversation.