Released 1997
Directed by Jim Jarmusch
Features Neil Young, Frank 'Pancho' Sampedro, Billy Talbot, Ralph Molina

Here's a pop quiz: Can you name three things to do to make the time pass more quickly while you're trapped in a theater showing Year of the Horse?

   1.Count to 10,000.
   2.Take a nice, long nap.
   3.Get up and walk out.

Of course, the best course of action would be not to get caught in this position in the first place. Unless you're a Neil Young die-hard, you're likely to find Year of the Horse unbearable. At the screening I attended, there were more walkouts than I have ever before witnessed at any movie, and for good reason: this is quite possibly the worst documentary I have ever had the displeasure of watching on the big screen.

Unless you worship at the altar of Neil Young, I urge you to avoid this film. Every year, I typically experience one or two movies that I find physically painful to sit through. Year of the Horse is such a film. What's especially shocking is that it comes from a talented director like Jarmusch, who is known for intelligent, thought-provoking pictures. Evidently, his feature film making ability doesn't translate into the documentary realm. Year of the Horse is one of 1997's ugliest dogs.

Summary by James Berardinelli