It's Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books

A film review by Christopher Null - Copyright © 2004 Filmcritic.com

Richard Linklater's first (and little seen) film is as mentally unwieldy as its title. But under the cryptic title and Jarmusch-like non-narrative is an interesting -- if far from classic -- narrative on the boringness of daily life (at least for Gen X slackers). A direct precursor to Slacker, Linklater's characters here are far more unmotivated in life. At least in Slacker people are trying to do something -- even if it's fixing a car. Plow's characters are content to ride busses and watch TV, while Linklater's unblinking camera captures it all. As a meditation on life, solitude, and how mundane traveling can be it's got a little something to it, but as a narrative it offers a mere taste of what Linklater would become capable of. Shot on Super 8 and packaged on DVD with Criterion's release of Slacker.

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Rating

3.0 out of 5 Stars

Cast and Crew

  • Director: Richard Linklater
  • Producer: Richard Linklater
  • Screenwriter: Richard Linklater
  • Stars: Richard Linklater
  • MPAA Rating: NR