Don't Look Back is a
black and white 1967
movie directed by legendary documentarian
D.A. Pennebaker. It records
folk/
rock singer Bob Dylan's
tour of
Britain in 1965. At that time, Dylan was already a big
star, with highly devoted
fans on both sides of the Atlantic.
The bulk of the film is made up of backstage scenes, with Dylan dealing with the press and often angry fans. These scenes show Dylan playing the surly rock star, dark glasses permanently affixed to his face and a snarl on his lips. Dylan's then manager Albert Grossman has a prominent role. Another famous face is British folkie Donovan, famed for such twee hits as "Mellow Yellow" and "Jennifer Juniper" as well as the more gutsy anti-Vietnam war song "Universal Soldier". Donovan was considered Dylan's leading rival at the time, although this is laughable in hindsight, and the two meet in the film and try to be really nice to each other.
The film features a number of Dylan classics, including the famous Subterranean Homesick Blues sequence where he stands in an alleyway with a bunch of cue cards. Among the other songs he performs are To Ramona, Love Minus Zero/No Limit, It's All Over Now, Baby Blue (directed at Donovan), The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll and It Ain't Me, Babe. Joan Baez sings Percy's Song, although her friendship with Dylan apparently ended during filming. British pop star Alan Price also appears, while Bob Neuwirth duets with Dylan on a version of Lost Highway.
Don't Look Back shows Bob Dylan both to be a genius and a bastard. Each of these facets make it enormously entertaining viewing; it's the sort of film that almost no star nowadays would even allow to be made. Combining historical value, musical excellence and some very funny sequences, it is a classic of documentary film-making.
The main credits are:
Director: D.A. Pennebaker
Writer: D.A. Pennebaker
Producers: John Court, Albert Grossman
Cinematography: Howard Alk, James Alk, D.A. Pennebaker
Editor: D.A. Pennebaker
Production Design: James D. Bissell
Sound: Robert Van Dyke