DVD Reviews

Bob Dylan: Don't Look Back – Blu-ray Review

By Frankie Dees Apr 25, 2011, 15:14 GMT

When acclaimed documentary filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker (Monterey Pop, The War Room) filmed Bob Dylan during a three-week concert tour of England in the Spring of 1965, he had no idea he was about to create one of the most intimate glimpses of the rock legend ever put on film. Wanting make more than just a concert film, Pennebaker decided to seek out both the public and private Bob Dylan. With ...more

D.A. Pennebaker’s seminal 1967 rock doc about Bob Dylan’s ’65 tour across Britain makes it to Blu-ray with a healthy supply of features and solid high-def stats. No doubt an interesting look at a slice of musical history and a music icon, but I still think Dylan’s intangible personality thankfully remains a mystery.

Being a fan of Dylan, I’ve always heard this doc paints him as a bit of a petty bully and does him no favors as America’s favorite musical poet. I stayed away as a result but having now seen it and listened to the commentary, it seems pretty obvious that while Dylan does seem to be carrying around a hefty self-image, this fly-on-the-wall portrait isn’t quite what it seems.

Pennebaker himself confessed that while the 16MM cameras and two-three person crew was unobtrusive, Dylan and his concert traveling posse including Joan Baez, Alan Price, Bob Neuwirth and his manager Albert Grossman were always very keenly aware of when the cameras were on and off and played up to a specific image.

So when Dylan throws every question from a young ‘science student’ journalist back in his face or when he harshly condemns a Time Magazine reporter for never reporting the truth or indeed not capable of ‘knowing the truth’, is this really Dylan? Or a rock poet image of himself he thinks might impress his fans?

He loves to throw the middle finger at the media yet seems personally pleased when the media he lambasts labels him as an anarchist in the final moments of the film. Why should he care what labels are applied to him by the media if they’re not capable of knowing the truth? I find it hard to believe these contradictions were not purposefully misleading considering the sharpness of his self-written lyrics.

So even if this doc isn’t necessarily an accurate portrayal of Dylan, this is still fascinating viewing for fans with the opening moments of the film setting the tone by showing the oft-copied cue cards clip from ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues’, a precursor to contemp music videos and still one of the great combinations of music and imagery.

Other fav moments include Albert Grossman making quick work of a hotel manager complaining about all the noise coming from Dylan’s room and a hilarious scene where he negotiates a fee with the BBC for a Dylan performance. Donovan of ‘Mellow Yellow’ fame stops by for a ballad where Dylan politely listens, smiles, and takes the guitar for a little ditty of his own and a sound trumping.

Of course, for Dylan fans, all of that takes a back seat to what is most important: seeing that lone mythical figure up onstage with a guitar and harmonica playing to sold-out crowds who sit in reverent silence as two instruments and a singular voice speak the truth.

Shot on 16mm cameras, ‘Don’t Look Back’ obviously isn’t going to replace ‘The Incredibles’ in any Best Buy Blu-ray demo displays anytime soon but the AVC 1080p encode framed at 1.33:1 looks pretty damn good considering the source.

The black and white image has solid contrast and detail and while some grain and dirt understandably pops up, you should be able to differentiate this from the DVD. The DTS-HD 2.0 mix is also solid considering what there was to work with.

The Disc 1 Blu-ray includes a commentary from director D.A. Pennebaker (who went on to make another influential rock doc ‘Monterey Pop’) and tour manager Bob Neuwirth and is a must listen for fans as a lot of context and detail is filled in about everybody’s experiences at that time. ‘Greil Marcus interview with D.A. Pennebaker’ and Audio Only versions of five tracks round things out on Disc 1.

Disc 2 is a DVD which includes ’65 Revisited’, a companion piece to ‘Dont Look Back’ which includes outtakes and deleted footage from the doc and runs over an hour in length. Also including a commentary with Pennebaker and Neuwirth, this is definitely worth checking out and was an awesome inclusion that really ups the value of the package.

As you’ve read, I remain skeptical at how really “honest” this film portrays Dylan but that doesn’t take away from the films many merits. It’s all about the music, man, and I think Dylan would rather you search for the truth there. You dig it?

If you already have the 2007 Tour Deluxe edition, I’m not so sure the high-def stats justify another purchase considering there are no new special features but if you don’t have the DVD yet, this Blu-ray package comes highly recommended. 

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