It's All Right, Bob - I'm Only Yawning

What a crashing bore. I was ready for some good viewing (especially after watching The evil stormtroopers of Tennessee pull one out of their ass against LSU) - Dylan performing at his artistic peak (circa Highway 61), getting booed for going electric - and Martin Scorsese recapping the whole affair. Couldn't miss. Wow, did it ever. Besides the fact that the rock-doc spends precious little time getting Dylan to talk about his songcrafting skills (I mean, what was the inspiration to lump together the likes of Ophelia, the Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Albert Einstein in one tune?), but rather all the influences on said skills; I think he mentioned the school janitor a couple of times. Languorous, tedious pace, and so frustratingly impersonal. There's a certain art to getting your subjects to come alive in interviewing; it's more than asking the right questions, but also framing your subject in a non-intrusive way that makes you feel a part of the story you're being told. Errol Morris has this skill (Gates of Heaven, Thin Blue Line, The Fog of War). Martin Scorsese knew how to do this once - it was called The Last Waltz, the finest rock "performance" movie ever made. This one looks like it could have been directed by Marty Feldman. In short, it looked like a typical PBS show. If the local station wants to try and carrot my donation with those annoying hippie fundraisers, it would do well to show a Ken Burns doc, Springsteen in New York, or a really good string of Austin City Limits jams - but not this tripe. And Dylan was off that night. Electric or not, he did kinda stink up the joint. I might have booed him as well. But he's never been a captivating live performer.