American Dreamer
Maybe counter-culture hero Dennis Hopper was full of shit all along...
For modern audiences, a profile of Dennis Hopper made in the immediate aftermath of Easy Rider is going to be coloured by knowledge of his subsequent career. His seminal, counter-cultural classic suggested he might have been the voice of a generation, but an alienating, substance-fuelled burnout abruptly reduced him to a tragic anachronism. American Dreamer captures the man expounding on his art, muttering 'it has to be real' like a crazed mantra, oblivious to a future that will see him take on roles in multiplex trash like Super Mario Bros. and Waterworld.
What's striking about this documentary is that it proves Hopper was full of shit all along. A commanding presence, he dominates every situation he finds himself in, usually by talking the loudest. Protected by celebrity, surrounded by fawning hangers-on and presumably footing the bill for his debauched gatherings, no-one dared challenge him on anything.
When an incredibly articulate Playgirl is shown questioning his assertion that society was responsible for the crimes of the Manson family, the host can only respond with a stream of arrogant non-sequitars. Like so many who preached peace and love, Hopper's behaviour was suggestive of a self-interested bully. It's these sociopathic traits that film makers L.M. Kit Carson and Lawrence Schiller sought to glorify.
Despite the subject's evident flaws as a person, American Dreamer nevertheless holds up as a compelling depiction of the seismic shift undergone by US culture in the 70s, as the truly toxic elements of the previous decade became painfully obvious.
Streming on MUBI till 12 Mar