Human Highway

HUMAN HIGHWAY is not for everybody and some parts don't work. Still, I love the flick. I think if in the writing they fleshed out the wonderful bizarre characters a little more, this thing could have been a masterpiece. As it stands, it has a wild surreal bent, with Neil Young and company not being afraid to fall on their collective face.

When the cast does the final WORRIED MAN number, it is rousing and strangely moving.. Everyones HUMANITY (as in HUMAN HIGHWAY) shines through. It is as if the company is both themselves and the characters they play.

I'm watching this movie in anticipation of catching my two favorite actors, Dean Stockwell & Dennis Hopper, in a couple of offbeat roles....but wait, is that Devo? And who is the weird character in the doll's mask? And why is the art direction so...arty? And Neil Young, with buck teeth and thick glasses, acting like a kid brother of Jerry Lewis....hold on, this ain't no offbeat movie - this movie is so OFF the beat, it's incredibly hip! I couldn't stop watching the damn thing....yep, Neil is really singing "Tonight" from West Side Story while wiping the windshield, 'cause, you see, Russ Tamblyn is his buddy, and, oh forget it.....Then, to find out Dean Stockwell and Russ Tamblyn helped write this production...and, what, you say Stockwell directed it? I'm in love. And I will never put down Neil Young, either.

When you've got movies like this to watch! This is one of the oddest things you'll ever see. Seems like Young, Stockwell and co. had ideas for several movies but decided to put them all into this one. Part musical, part comedy, part fantasy, part anti-nuke message film, all filmed on a stylised set somewhere between Pee Wee's Playhouse, One From The Heart and The Wizard Of Oz. You've got Neil Young with goofy teeth, and a supporting cast of solid cult types like Stockwell, Hopper, Kirkland and Tamblyn, plus Mary from Eraserhead and DEVO! Can you dig it? If you can pick up a copy of Neil's unfairly maligned album Trans too. The guy isn't just a folksy singer-songwriter and the Godfather of Grunge, he's a freakin' VISIONARY people. Well if not a visionary, a wacko with a loony sense of humour.

When hearing about Human Highway I had some doubts about a film made by a musician. Then I saw it. Had I died and gone to heaven? The experiance of watching this film was almost biblical. I have seen this film literary 50 times, each time it got even better then the last. If my life has a purpose, it is to watch Human Highway 1000 times. The film is extrordinarily well written, by the end of the film I was in tears. It has superb wit and sentimentality. The directing is prehaps the best to grace our screens bar none. When seen at face value the film looks like an absolute piece of crap, but when seen in context with the subtext and style it is one of the most powerful movies in existance. In this reviewers opinion it is the greatest of all anti war movies. The acting is top notch, the greatest surprise was the versitilty of Dennis Hopper playing 4 characters each played with masterful skill. Neil Young's acting displays the trials and hardships of the little man, never is it patronising. My life is complete. 1/10

Why don't they make movies like this any more? Sure it's a stupid movie. Sure, it's pointless too. But damn, if it isn't cool. Best part is forced perspective set and Devo deconstructing "My My Hey Hey!" Plus, look for Neil doing a one of a kind "shovel dance!"