A Complete Unknown, the stunning new film starring Timothée Chalamet, will leave Bob Dylan fans in raptures and non-fans engrossed in the emergence of an American music idol who dared to challenge his own fame. BILL WATT reports.
First, a confession: I have been a fan of Bob Dylan since I was a teenager, so this film review may contain a certain amount of bias.
I have listened to his music endlessly, bought books about him, worn the t-shirts, seen the concerts.
But, despite all this I have always felt I was a bit of a fraud as I only became obsessed by his talent in the late 1970s, and completely missed out on the decade that defined the music legend - the 1960s (being a mere child in Scotland and Australia in those years).
Then along comes James Mangold's brilliant new movie that plants the viewer slap bang in the middle of the maelstrom of that long-gone era, just as a young Jewish folk singer from America's Mid West is taking New York by storm.
You are dropped right there amongst it all - the civil rights movement, the threat of atomic war, the death of a president ... huge American gas guzzlers, motor bikes, folk clubs ... beatnik fashion, LP records, protest songs .... and, emerging from the ever-present pall of cigarette smoke, the endless quest for love. It's quite a journey.
Of course, central to the film is the emergence of Dylan as a sought-after talent in the booming New York folk music scene, the rapid growth of his popularity, his coronation by the folk music set as the "voice of a generation" and then his ultimate rejection of that role.
Essentially, the movie is the story of a gifted artist's struggle to remove the shackles of expectation and replace them with the freedom to do something different.
The film culminates at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965 where Dylan infamously/famously pokes a finger in the eye of festival organisers and many of his fans by turning up the volume and playing a chaotic set with an electric band. It turned out to be a turning point in popular music history, when, some say, "rock 'n' roll grew up".
OK, down to the tin tacks for people not necessarily enthralled by the music. The performances of the actors in A Complete Unknown are extraordinary.
Timothée Chalamet nails Dylan as a genius singer/song writer who struggles with the responsibilities of living in the "normal" world. His "live" stage performances - playing harmonica and guitar as well as singing - are exceptional.
Monica Barbaro is also crazily impressive in her role as Dylan love interest and America's queen of folk, Joan Baez. It is hard to believe that before preparing for the movie, she had never had formal singing or guitar lessons. Just wow.
Ed Norton as folk music king Pete Seeger and Boyd Holbrook as country music legend Johnny Cash also stun with their acting and musical performances.
And, finally, just to prove I am not writing from the perspective solely of a Dylan fan, the movie has garnered eight Academy Award nominations. Those nominations are for: Best Film; Best Director (James Mangold); Best Actor (Timothee Chalamet); Best Supporting Actor (Ed Norton); Best Supporting Actress (Monica Barbaro); Best Costume Design; Best Sound and Best Adapted Screenplay.
I reckon the film should win them all ... but maybe I really am just biased. Anyway, it's five stars from me!
For those who are interested, on Dylan's 80th birthday in 2021, I compiled a list of my 50 favourite Bob songs. You can see them at:
Comments