I really enjoyed seeing Bob as he was at 18-25 which is what the period covers. In truth - the present day interview segments with Bob at 64 don't shed that much light on many of the moments captured during the various tours and performances in the 59-66 period. We get more information from the ridiculous interviews of the time and a real sense of the absurd which is confirmed by Bob in the current day.
"No Direction Home" appears to be, in part a way to deconstruct some of the myths surrounding Bob's early career. It also seems like the media of the day was intent on categorizing Bob while he saw music and performing from a much more fluid viewpoint. In my view he was a music explorer or "expeditionary" as he reminds us and his search for an authentic voice in music was much more significant than any of the labels that were placed on him.
As the story unfolds - we get to share some of the frustrations and exhilaration of live shows as he gets to rework both his own back catalogue and react to the well intended but misplaced public expectations of him - at the time. Not surprisingly he resisted this and this idea is a recurring them in No Direction Home.
Luckily the interviews with contemporaries such as Joan Baez and go much further in exploring the mythology surrounding the story. The best point comes from Joan who notes that even though Bob was never overtly political (more about the songs - than the politics) he did give the protest movement some of their best songs ever - and you can't argue with that. Particularly liked the story about Bob's university enrollment - "too busy to actually go to class" - often sleeping after performing all night. And the one about going to visit Woody Guthrie in a mental hospital and playing his own songs back to Woody - when Bob would have been around 20 yrs old.
One of my favorite music / movie memories is seeing "the Last Waltz" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077838/) from 1978 which was also directed by Scorsese and featured the last performance of the Band and Bob appeared as guest on that. The 1966 shows that end this were some of the first for the Band and so this documentary makes 'No Direction Home' some kind of prequel.
For most people the best thing about this collection is that it includes great chunks of "Don't Look Back" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061589/)and some other great archival footage for example - includes a very strange short clip of Hank Williams singing Cold, Cold Heart. Many of these clips are very hard to find and it is always going to be easier to find this DVD than - lets say Reynaldo & Clara from 1978 directed by Bob himself or Eat the Document completed in '72 which covers some of the same '66 shows as featured in this collection.
There is a selection of full length performances hidden away on the DVD and the other way to watch this is to just watch the music clips without the comments. There are also some full length music performances from TV shows and the like. Joan Baez was a total revelation. She was there but managed to come out the other side without frying her brain and still sounds great.
I watched some of this with my 5yr old daughter and she noted that Bob was singing really silly but she liked it. I last saw Bob perform in '86 when his performance was totally crap live. He may as well have stayed home - as he made Tom Petty look good. By contrast this compilation shows us the awesome talents of the young Bob and the more human side, perhaps before the constant touring wore him down.
The young theatrical Bob who changed the timings on songs to make life on the road seems far more interesting than the Bob who has only been semi- present for long periods. The editor has done a great job in compiling and linking the various sequences. The musical material is very powerful and it is easy to engage with the music and forget about the film.
I note that as I write this a new Dylan album has appeared and that it shows signs of humor and a joy of life missing for many years. However it is 3 earlier albums -"Highway 61 Revisited", "Blonde on Blonde" and "Blood on the Tracks" that I'll be checking out next because of this DVD. There is also an autobiography called "The Chronicles" which covers some of the same ground and came out the same time.
"No Direction Home" appears to be, in part a way to deconstruct some of the myths surrounding Bob's early career. It also seems like the media of the day was intent on categorizing Bob while he saw music and performing from a much more fluid viewpoint. In my view he was a music explorer or "expeditionary" as he reminds us and his search for an authentic voice in music was much more significant than any of the labels that were placed on him.
As the story unfolds - we get to share some of the frustrations and exhilaration of live shows as he gets to rework both his own back catalogue and react to the well intended but misplaced public expectations of him - at the time. Not surprisingly he resisted this and this idea is a recurring them in No Direction Home.
Luckily the interviews with contemporaries such as Joan Baez and go much further in exploring the mythology surrounding the story. The best point comes from Joan who notes that even though Bob was never overtly political (more about the songs - than the politics) he did give the protest movement some of their best songs ever - and you can't argue with that. Particularly liked the story about Bob's university enrollment - "too busy to actually go to class" - often sleeping after performing all night. And the one about going to visit Woody Guthrie in a mental hospital and playing his own songs back to Woody - when Bob would have been around 20 yrs old.
One of my favorite music / movie memories is seeing "the Last Waltz" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077838/) from 1978 which was also directed by Scorsese and featured the last performance of the Band and Bob appeared as guest on that. The 1966 shows that end this were some of the first for the Band and so this documentary makes 'No Direction Home' some kind of prequel.
For most people the best thing about this collection is that it includes great chunks of "Don't Look Back" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061589/)and some other great archival footage for example - includes a very strange short clip of Hank Williams singing Cold, Cold Heart. Many of these clips are very hard to find and it is always going to be easier to find this DVD than - lets say Reynaldo & Clara from 1978 directed by Bob himself or Eat the Document completed in '72 which covers some of the same '66 shows as featured in this collection.
There is a selection of full length performances hidden away on the DVD and the other way to watch this is to just watch the music clips without the comments. There are also some full length music performances from TV shows and the like. Joan Baez was a total revelation. She was there but managed to come out the other side without frying her brain and still sounds great.
I watched some of this with my 5yr old daughter and she noted that Bob was singing really silly but she liked it. I last saw Bob perform in '86 when his performance was totally crap live. He may as well have stayed home - as he made Tom Petty look good. By contrast this compilation shows us the awesome talents of the young Bob and the more human side, perhaps before the constant touring wore him down.
The young theatrical Bob who changed the timings on songs to make life on the road seems far more interesting than the Bob who has only been semi- present for long periods. The editor has done a great job in compiling and linking the various sequences. The musical material is very powerful and it is easy to engage with the music and forget about the film.
I note that as I write this a new Dylan album has appeared and that it shows signs of humor and a joy of life missing for many years. However it is 3 earlier albums -"Highway 61 Revisited", "Blonde on Blonde" and "Blood on the Tracks" that I'll be checking out next because of this DVD. There is also an autobiography called "The Chronicles" which covers some of the same ground and came out the same time.