Greatest Minds of My Generation

For my money, the two heros of I’M NOT THERE are David Cross, in wickedly inspired casting as Allen Ginsberg, and Al Kooper, who oversaw the BLONDE ON BLONDE sessions to make the score a delight to hear on those large theatrical speakers. Otherwise, Haynes’s movie is about as avant-garde as a game of checkers, too literal by half, and you feel embarrassed for Heath Ledger. If you don’t know its sources, make an effort to see Pennebaker’s DON’T LOOK BACK and Scorsese’s NO DIRECTION HOME.