Bob Dylan is one of the most difficult celebrities to portray. Probably by his own choice, he’s not the most expressive guy in the world. His voice is often a mumble and his emotions often seem muted. Whether out of cynicism about fame or something else, he generally maintains an air of aloofness, though his music speaks volumes.
Timothée Chalamet probably comes closest to that idea than anyone else in James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown. This isn’t a “Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles”-style interpretation, though the story wisely deals with Dylan’s enigmatic nature, giving the star room to shine.
Director: James MangoldWriters: James Mangold, Jay Cocks, Elijah WaldStars: Timothée Chalamet, Edward Norton, Elle Fanning
Young Dylan arrives in New York and heads to the hospital where his idol, Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy), is being treated. His desire is to pay tribute to him. Folk music legend Pete Seeger (Edward Norton) is visiting Guthrie when he arrives. After hearing him sing, Seeger sets about helping the upstart musician, getting him gigs and introducing him to important people, including Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro). Dylan falls in love with Sylvie Russo (Elle Fanning, playing a fictionalized Suze Rotolo) during this time, despite his attraction to Baez.
Trying to cover Bob Dylan's entire career in one film would be futile. A Complete Unknown sticks to his early days, focusing on a very specific idea. As Dylan's popularity grows through protest songs, Seeger imagines him as the artist who can take folk music to the next level, introducing it to people who would otherwise ignore it. Dylan, however, doesn't necessarily want that role. Throughout the second half of the film there is a dispute over electric guitars. Dylan begins to lean toward them and a rock sound in general; Seeger feels they will alienate traditional folk audiences.
That’s a compelling angle, made more compelling by the contrasting yet complementary performances of Chalamet and Norton. In the latter film, Seeger is a soft-spoken peacemaker who always tries to downplay conflict. In the former, he delves directly into Dylan’s enigmatic nature. Both humor and tension arise from watching these two men, who have different philosophies but share a passion for music, frustrate each other, despite their mutual respect. A Complete Unknown becomes a smart exploration of the eternal battle between tradition and innovation.
Where the film falters is in its treatment of women. Despite being very well played by Barbaro, Joan Baez doesn’t get anywhere near the recognition she deserves. Meanwhile, the romance between Dylan and Sylvie is presented in a shallow, conventional way. Fanning has a couple of powerful moments; unfortunately, the script never allows her to make the character much more than a generic girlfriend.
A Complete Unknown would be a stronger film overall if the women in Dylan’s lifae were more fleshed out. However, the portrayal of Bob Dylan stubbornly refusing to be pigeonholed by the folk world is compelling enough to make the film worth watching. The man was, is, and always will be an iconoclast. Here we gain insight into how iconoclasts change the world and why it is important that they do so.
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