Dont Look Back (1967)

Director:

D.A. Pennebaker

Writer:

D.A. Pennebaker (writer)

Release Date:

24 February 1968 (Sweden)

Genre:

Documentary | Music

Plot:

Documentary covering Bob Dylan's 1965 tour of England, which includes appearances by Joan Baez and Donovan.

Plot Keywords:

Bob Dylan | Tour | Hotel | Musician | Charisma

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Bob Dylan	...	Himself
Albert Grossman	...	Himself
Bob Neuwirth	...	Himself
Joan Baez	...	Herself
Alan Price	...	Himself
Tito Burns	...	Himself
Donovan	...	Himself
Derroll Adams	...	Himself
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Howard Alk	...	Himself
Jones Alk	...	Herself

Also Known As:

Don't Look Back (USA) (orthographically correct title)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:S | Singapore:PG | Sweden:Btl

Company:

Leacock-Pennebaker

Trivia:

In the opening scene Allen Ginsberg appears behind Bob Dylan as he flips the note cards.

Quotes:

Bob Dylan: Keep a good head and always carry a light bulb.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

Mean-spirited and brilliant

Perhaps I'm biased -- Bob Dylan is quite possibly my favourite performing artist in the world. This very cinema-verite look at Dylan's 1965 tour of England offers both a serious justification of the man's genius and a very unflattering look at the costs and results of that genius. This was clearly not a happy time for Dylan, who rushes through most of the songs included here like a man who clearly wishes he were somewhere else. Not that the performances are poor (quite the contrary) but the heart and sincerity are quite obviously missing (note how "The Times they are a-Changin'" speeds up gradually but unmistakably throughout the film). The backstage material (the bulk of the film) shows Dylan being generally nasty to everyone around him, including Joan Baez (well, he's not nasty precisely, but he never really even acknowledges her presence), a newspaper reporter (the "science student") and basically anyone he comes in contact with.

In other words, this is not a portrait of the artist that I happen to like, but it is the truth (or at least it was at that time). In addition, Albert Grossman, Dylan's manager, is shown in possibly the least flattering light possible. A bonus is that the film begins with the brilliant 1965 promotional clip for "Subterranean Homesick Blues", and watch for the scene in a hotel room when Dylan and Bob Neuwirth sing "Lost Highway" - it's worth the price of admission.