Expecting Rain

Surely this is a wind-up.

And in that way it's actually very effectual.

Hey, I love violence, drugs, creepiness, and plane old camp bordering on yard sale trash. To me this video is none of those things, least of all edgy. It's contrived pablum. Maybe it's based on a Larry Brown story, or an attempt at Fassbinder/Berlin Alexanderplatz-like portraiture of love... If so they left out that makes that type of thing enjoyable (i.e. craft).

I don't think this is some grand artistic gesture because it's irritating people.

Hell I'm not even looking for meaning, I can watch the Sweetheart Like You video and find it redeeming. This video just feels like some crappy student film that leaves you wishing you had those 4 minutes of your life back... different strokes I guess.

Maybe you missed the part at the end where they kissed? I personally interpretted the video as an extreme example of how couples can be at each others' throats - generally metaphorically, in this case literally - and then, with nothing really changing, completely forget about the whole thing and put it behind them. Happens all the time. The fact that some people can't accept how that metaphor is played out on a stage says more about them than it does about Bob.

As for the abuse theory, I really don't think the message is about abuse at all. The violence is completely two-way here (ending with the woman running over the guy!): it's a duel, not an abusive relationship. I wonder how people would react if it had been the guy hiding in the bedroom.

When I was watching it all I was thinking about was the recent cases of people being confined in their home aganist their will i.e. the Austrian case. Thought it was a bit close to the bone

Insert joke about kids getting under your feet here.

^Wow, a little pent-up bitterness, anyone? You still haven't explain how it's an abusive relationship when both parties are doling out equal portions of violence, with the purported victim inflicting more damage every time. A man inflicting pain on a woman does not an abusive relationship make. You're building assumptions on assumptions, and coming to your own conclusions.

If it were more stylishly done, this could've been an interesting video.
But as is, as many have said here, it's very much a student film, not that
there's anything wrong with that. I went to film school myself. But like much on
the IFC, it's rather pedestrian. Poor lighting, bad acting, a knife wound that looks fake,
and a "twist ending", it's everything I can't stand about American Independent Film today. Just dumb.
I think what I am most shocked by is the fact that
Bob was like "sure, go ahead".
My guess is that there was some stupid contest that someone won and the prize
was the use of the song.

But I think Long John said it, who really cares about his videos anyway?
They're always ill-conceived and he doesn't seem to give a shit, why should I?

As far as the abuse controversy and all, get over it. This shit is on Fox every night.

I really hope this video will fade out of my memory. Everytime I listen to BHLN I don´t wanna think about this atrocity. Criminal. That´s what this video is. What a stain on a great song on a great album!

Are you saying it's not an abusive relationship? They're abusing each other.

All I'm saying is that this video is not that edgy. It really says very little.

i just got to see it a few minutes ago because i cannot watch video at work.

how can people be disturbed by this and not disturbed by bob's lyrics? i knew when the dude took a cast iron pan to the face (with sound effect) and got back up it wasn't really about the (cartoon) violence. and, much like bob's songs, it can be interpreted a lot of different ways. at one point i thought maybe she was a herion addict and he was trying to keep her clean......which is why she was so frantic and locked up. i understand the violence to women angle, but there are a lot of other, subtle things going on there.

and seriously: if it upsets you that much, maybe you need to volunteer some of the time you spend on the message board and give women caught in a cycle of abuse some hope.

by the way:
i envision a wily, smirky, squinty-eyed bob as a band leader on the titanic singing 'it's all good' as the boat hits the ice and gloriously dark mayhem ensues.

So, how did you get on with Jessica?

You know what's particularly annoying about it? It's how they went out of their way to make the violence realistic. Is it really needed? Maybe some Batman-style violence would have worked better. I enjoy seeing the bad guy get his ass kicked, but this violence just seemed a bit extreme for a Bob Dylan music video.

It's just so amateur and irrelevant. What was the point?

I think someone's been giving Bob some bad advice.

I think the video is an absolute disgrace, Dylan is gonna lose a load of devoted fans.

I would rather listen to Knocked Out Loaded than watch that again. Ok, enough bitching from me for now.

No, he's not. Most will never even see it. Those that do see it will bitch and moan for a week, then move on.

the college aged kids who stand for the whole show crowding and pushing to the front while drinking too much beer yelling woo-hoo on your bootlegs are gonna love it. it seems to me that they are vastly under-represented here.

Yeah, thats one great way to get down with the young fans. Did they spill your cocoa while you sat in your bathchair or something?

I'm sure if the youngsters knew they were runing your bootleg enjoyment they'd think twice about woo-hoo'ing in future.

Abuse implies damage aimed in one direction. As I said earlier, they are fighting each other. It's not abuse, it's a duel, a showdown. I wonder how many of those calling this drivel enjoy the old westerns, or any other action movie for that matter. I don't recall many people coming out of those movies saying "wow, I wish they had made that ridiculously realistic fight scene less realistic".

I like to think of them as brother and sister. That makes it seem less bad.