Bob Dylan “A Complete Unknown” Review

The new film A Complete Unknown is a must see for fans of Bob Dylan, music fans in general, and fans of the actors who make up the outstanding cast.

Timothee Chalamet as Bob Dylan couldn’t be better.  He plays and sings all of the songs live (so many great songs!), and his full acting performance makes you believe you’re watching a young Bob Dylan.  Honestly, his performance is better than the Oscar winner and nominees of recent music biographies.

Monica Barbaro is also amazing as a young and self-assured Joan Baez.  She fully performs the songs, and does a great job on the Dylan & Baez duets.

Other music stars featured in the film are folk pioneer Pete Seeger and Country icon Johnny Cash.  Edward Norton and Boyd Holbrook are also convincing in those roles.

Besides the fantastic casting, the best decision with A Complete Unknown was to limit the time frame of the movie to 1961 through 1965.  This takes us from Dylan’s arrival in New York City (without giving us his childhood in Minnesota), and takes us through his “going electric” with his biggest hit “Like A Rolling Stone” which includes the movie’s title in its lyrics.

The major non-singing role is by Elle Fanning as Sylvie Russo.  She’s based on Dylan’s girlfriend Suze Rotolo.  Here she is on Dylan’s album cover.

She was an artist (painter) and political activist.  She encouraged Bob Dylan to perform more of his own songs, and is the original source of his political activism.

Elle Fanning has already received accolades for her performance.  Because of her age, it’s unusual that Fanning was a Dylan fan when she was 13.  She says director Cameron Crowe introduced her to Dylan’s music.  She may have been the only teenage girl in that decade to have a Dylan poster on her bedroom wall.

Dylan freely gave credit to Suze Rotolo for her help early in his career, including being the inspiration for several of his songs over many years.  Dylan and Rotolo remained lifelong friends.  She died from lung cancer in 2011.

The movie does an amazing job of recreating the early 1960s, not only with the sets and the vintage cars, but with all of the supporting cast.  We see people we’ve only read about in books or on album covers come to life.  It really feels like you’ve been dropped back in time.

(Posters in the movie theater in Springfield, OR)

My wife and I went to the movie on December 27th, our wedding anniversary.  After the show I asked Jeannette what she thought of it and she said “I want to see it again.”  That’s probably the best compliment you can give a movie.