The American Dreamer

Long hidden in the vaults of the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, this is a fascinating if far from revelatory portrait of Dennis Hopper. Made in the wake of Easy Rider and during the editing of his directorial follow-up, The Last Movie (1971), this is less an insight into the life and mind of a counterculture icon than an extended photo opportunity. It follows Hopper around Los Angeles and his home in Taos, New Mexico, while allowing him to compare himself to Orson Welles and spout a good deal of self-deluded nonsense. Co-directors Lawrence Schiller and LM Kit Carson aren't content with prompting Hopper with off-camera questions: they also stage-manage sequences involving Hopper shooting off guns in the desert, walking naked down a suburban street, sharing a hot tub with a couple of young ladies and enjoying a flirtatious soirée with a dozen more. The insights into Hopper's unhappy youth and his wayward but intriguing acting career are invaluable. But, even though he is too often under the influence to offer much cogent opinion, he is always too canny a performer to allow the camera to get close to the truth.