Don't Look Back

Filmed in 1965, this documentary follows Dylan and his entourage on his British tour. There are some concert scenes that give a feel for his performance persona. There are scenes of his manager and British agents making deals for him to appear at various venues. But most of the film concerns Dylan backstage. Shot in black and white, the film shows Dylan to be very mercurial. He is at times charming, communicative and seemingly open about his feelings. Other times--in fact most of the time--he is confrontational, condescending and self-contradictory. He is about 24 years old and these scenes remind me of discussions I had when I was that age with other college students. His arguments are circular, as if he enjoys arguing more than he enjoys communicating. He embraces the poet's privilege of not explaining the meaning of his lyrics (which is fine). One gets the feeling that he is tired of dealing with the media and others who want to pick his brain. Why did he give them audience, then? On the other hand, he is generous with fans who have no questions for him, merely seeking his presence or a glimpse of the man. While some of his songs do seem somewhat shallow, others are undeniably deep with meaning about issues that are very timely. Regardless, his songs often have a hypnotic effect, with their sing-song cadences. This film might raise more questions than it answers, but it is fun to watch. The presence of Joan Baez is a plus. Her voice was always special. We don't see much of her, but enough to see her react to teasing and to make silly faces in return. Dylan's songs feel mostly declarative. They are assertions and observations. They usually don't extract the emotional responses of, say, Joni Mitchell, who invites listeners to her inner world. Dylan asks his listeners to regard the outside world with him.

Very entertaining cinema verite look at Bob Dylan's 1965 tour of England. Provides some glances past Dylan's iconic image, and some very entertaining music as well as behind the scenes footage. Interesting anecdote to "A Hard Day's Night". In this one the teen girls gush, but they aren't sure why. Poses interesting questions that need not be answered, but not at all heavy handed. Dylan comes off as too cool for school. Joan Baez and Donovan sing too. Dylan drunkenly argues with a groupie. Entertainment with some provocation.

Been listening to a lot of Dylan recently and so I watched this again. Probably not seen it since video days and the only drawback that I remember from that viewing was that some of the dressing room/hotel room conversations were a bit inaudible. Much clearer now and what a superb documentary this is. Again, perhaps, particularly seeing it 45 years after it was shot it is amazing to see Dylan performing the very songs I am still listening to and seeing him in conversation and argument with pals and interviewers. How old the people sent to interview him now seem and how unprepared for the changing times. So fantastic to have such a document without over dubbed narration or nodding heads just a swirling camera glancing from face to face and following Bob down labyrinthine corridors until finally out of the darkness and onto the spotlight stage. Clapping and not screaming greets his songs and the relaxed and jokey style is a joy to watch. Not sure what my favourite bits are but apart from the stage songs there is a great exchange with a journalist from Time magazine and another with a university student/interviewer. Probably best for me, though, was the turn with Donovan who bravely performs a song in front of Dylan and his entourage to quiet appreciate and some success. But, Dylan then borrows his guitar and replies with a devastating performance of It's All Over Now Baby Blue. It wasn't over for Donovan for a few more years but it is still not yet over for the amazingly creative, Bob Dylan.

Towards the end of Don't Look Back, a reporter asks a babbling, pretentious, possibly stoned Bob Dylan how much of what he says he actually means. While Dylan blows up at the reporter, the question is central to the movie, which portrays a young, arrogant, brilliant folk singer playing music and arguing with people. At times it all seems like a put on, with Dylan poking and prodding people just to see how they'll react. He let's everyone know that he doesn't really care what anyone thinks, yet at times you can see how concerned he is with his own image. Dylan is contrary, but he has something to say, both in his songs and in moments like a weird argument with some guy about whether Dylan should take an interest in this guy. The movie also has his posse, most notably a young Joan Baez who seems like a lot more fun than her woke-Madonna persona lead me to believe. This is cinema verite, which means it just tosses a bunch of stuff at the viewer and lets them sort it out. Dylan pontificating, Dylan's manager negotiating payment, Dylan on stage, singing almost invariably with less passion than when he's singing offstage. It's an interesting movie, although I'm not sure how interesting one would find it without a preceding interest in Dylan.

"Don't Look Back" provides a fascinating, albeit unflattering glimpse of Dylan's '65 English tour. Onstage, he's great, sailing through memorable performances of "Times They Are A-Changin'", "All I Really Want to Do" and "Mister Tambourine Man," but elsewhere, he comes off as an arrogant twit who had begun to take the adulation a little too seriously. He is seen being impossibly rude to a BBC reporter while his manager, Albert Grossman is busy extorting promoters for more money. Dylan's relationship with Joan Baez had seriously deteriorated by that point, and the scenes they share are strained, though she offers a stunning version of "Love is Just a Four-Letter Word" in a late-night hotel room, before disappearing entirely from the tour (and film). Donovan appears briefly. Filmed in striking B&W.

If you're a Bob Dylan fan, do yourself a favor and rent the DVD version of "Don't Look Back." It includes an optional audio track of commentary from director D.A. Pennebaker and Bob Neuwirth, Dylan's pal and "tour manager" who was along for the ride on the '65 tour of England this film documents. Their thoughts are interesting, often insightful, occasionally hilarious and shed some light on the movie's more esoteric moments. For example, I never realized the extended hotel room scene of Dylan playing the piano was Bob actually _writing_ a piece of music. You'll probably learn something even if you've read all the books (Benson, Heylin, etc.). Oh, and it turns out Albert Grossman _loves_ the way he's portrayed in the movie, according to Pennebaker. Plus there's a fun alternate version of the "Subterranean Homesick Blues" video (which, for the kids out there, was copied in the '80s by INXS for their "Mediate" video) that was shot in a park somewhere, in which Dylan has even less control of the cards than he does in the final cut. Ginsberg is in the background of this one, too.

In the review, CT writes; "Donovan is in the film for a bit, and when Dylan sings "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" there's noticeably (and presciently) less room applause for him than for Donovan who's just sung before, and who seems to have no idea what's going on." Did CT miss the whole point of that bit in the film? At the time the film was shot, Donovan was being billed as "the new Dylan". So, the energy in that room was more than a bit negatively charged. Donovan appears more than a little out of his league, and Dylan does nothing to ease that feeling. When Donovan offers up a bit of musical bubble-gum, Dylan responds with a slamming piece of the real thing; "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue". So, of course there was "less room applause", ... the people in that room had just watched Donovan being put firmly, and embarrassingly, in his place by the master.

The best part of DON'T LOOK BACK is when Bobby Dylan starts ripping apart a reporter from TIME, telling the guy from TIME that he is a moron. It's also fascinating to see these old school businessmen putting up with antics because they know he will make them rich. As for the performances, however, they're a bit lackluster. DA usually cuts before the songs are over, more interested in focusing on the so called Dylan aura. In addition, I was disappointed when Donovan and Dylan play back to back in the hotel room. My friend said that Dylan absolutely blows Donovan out of the water. But, I wasn't as sure. Nonetheless, if you're into the character of Bobby, DON'T LOOK BACK is a must-see. Unfortunately, if you're a huge fan of his music and prefer to imagine him as some gentle poet, you're in for an unpleasant surprise. Because, although Dylan is a genius, he comes off in this film as pretentious, cold, and off setting.

It is my understanding this is one of the first, and in my opinion easily one of the best rock-umentaries ever made. This film is about, possibly the most brilliant and enigmatic pop icon in the last 100 years, during one of the bravest and most dynamic phases of his career. An absolutely wonderful film. I understand that every frame needed Dylan's approval before being released. I applaud him too, as this is not the most flattering portrayal I've ever seen. Actually at times he comes off as a genuine jerk, and I am a monstrous (bordering on irrational) Dylan fan. This is an honest look at a brilliant man, without descending into simple glorification or spin-doctoring. The film has the same sort of "this is how it is, take it or leave it" sensibility that I find Dylan to exemplify. An unrefined gem about an unrefined gem.

History only matters to the living at least, and among them to those who can consume the packages we devise to understand what happened. Sometimes I really do believe it requires elite skills, a term used by people without the training and discipline. But most of the time, its just about cultural wrappers, and this is such a case. I can imagine a young person, say a 25 year old, watching this and wondering what the big deal was. Why is this pretentious gnome at all interesting? I think you had to be there, which is another way of saying that you had to be culturally tuned to accept the possibility of major change. For whatever reason, we were, from say 65 to 70, a hundred million in the US and countless others elsewhere. And where we invested our hopes was in these artifacts of the popular culture. In films, yes, but more so in the music. It was religious, with the artists serving more as receptacles for what we sent them than as creative geniuses. Well, yes they were that too, but we have many of those today but miss this huge investment. When Dylan made records from about this period on, each of them (until, say he was lost to Jesus) — each of them anticipated where the poetry we were imagining was going. It was open, liquid, sexually ideal. Powerful stuff, because we felt power. Collective because we did most things collectively then, not just purchasing as now. This little film is so imperfect that its embarrassing that it is all we have to cling to. It just happens to be rare. It has three parts. One is some stage performances. These aren't interesting at all, in large part because he had already changed but hadn't told us. This same period is covered by Martin Scorcese's rather precious "No Direction Home: Bob Dylan," which at least tells a story for those who weren't there. It also hangs around in hotel rooms, interviews and backstage and hears Dylan rattle on. Its embarrassing this, because we still have this notion that great art comes from great men and women and that they know what they are doing. He's basically a twit that we chose, and we see it here. The only really interesting element of this is a glimpse of Sally Grossman. You'll know her from the cover of "Bringing It All Back Home." She's an important woman in the transformation of our poet. She's perhaps the key, a mystery, a poetical story we still can fill after all these years, because it still carries things we accept. If not power and change and better futures, honest politicians and ideal government, enlightenment, at least love from a wise woman who transforms a willing soul. A third part of this really is great and is something you really should see. Dylan's first electric song was "Subterranean Homesick Blues," originally inspired by Alice in Wonderland meets a Guthrey "dream" song, but loaded and transformed with the sort of open images that would characterize his best work. He hadn't started performing it in shows yet. Alan Ginsberg decided to make a text — a residue in words — of the song, introducing puns and annotations of the already open lyrics. These were put on large sheets. Then, while the camera and record were rolling, Dylan flipped through them as the lines appeared, Ginsberg in the background. Its wonderful, a film of a poem of a song of a life of an imagined future revisited from that future. Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.