SPOILER: i name things I like

Rating: 9/10 (24 September 2007)

Or, "I was born a po'r black chile..." Synopsis: A complete imbecile struggles to make it through life on his own, until a strange invention makes him unbelievably wealthy. That invention was the myth of Bob Dylan, an American myth, a myth for the beat-behind generation (of which I have been a lifelong member). The myth of Bob Dylan borrows so heavily from other extant mythologies that I have no scruples whatsoever about appropriating my synopsis from IMDb's write up of The Jerk, a late 20th century bildungsroman, loosely derived from the art and the many lives of Steve Martin. (indeed, it feels entirely appropriate and uncannily fitting to do this.) But I should be clear about one thing: I really absolutely LOVED Todd Haynes' movie. Just loved it. Laughed aloud often: especially when the band strides out onto the flatbed at the little New England Jazz Fest, turns around and machine guns the audience? I loved the porcelain tea pots in Alice's frumpy-posh apartment. I loved the exchange about the missing pet between Jude and Coco. I loved Richie Havens singing on the porch. I don't know what this movie would be to someone watching without the experience of Dylan the Mythical Creature as a life-long fixture on the interior landscape. Who cares? This movie was made for me, and I just loved it. Thank you Todd. Et all o' ya.