Public Comment

This intense Bob Dylan biopic begins in1961 and ends in 1965. During these five years, Dylan conquered the world of folk music and then left it to become a rock star. 

For the past sixty years, Bob Dylan has been the doyen of American popular music, but remained a prickly, enigmatic figure. “A complete Unknown” provides fresh insight into what drives Dylan: his entire life is devoted to song writing. (Dylan is one of the few rock performers who writes lyrics, creates the accompanying music, arranges the recording, and sings the song.) James Mangold, who co-wrote the script with Jay Cocks, makes no attempt to sugar-coat Dylan; he depicts him as a genius who has one true love: music. 

Since the sixties, there have been three American singer-songwriters that approach Dylan’s stature: Paul Simon. Bruce Springsteen, and Brian Wilson. Simon, and Springsteen were likable, Wilson reclusive. Simon and Wilson have stopped touring. Dylan tours constantly but has remained inscrutable. 

In American music culture, the closest parallel to Bob Dylan is Miles Davis. Prickly enigmatic geniuses who left behind a trail of battered relationships and great music. Davis’s “Kind of Blue” is the most popular jazz album. Dylan’s “Highway 61 revisited” is one of the most influential rock albums. 

It’s not an easy task portraying Dylan: a likable cad. Timothee Chalamet does a splendid job. Oscar worthy. We are fascinated by him almost enough to excuse his terrible behavior. 

Movie critics like “A Complete Unknown” but have two complaints: 1. Some of them are upset because the film is not historically accurate. For example, when Bob Dylan first met Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger was not present. I can live with these inaccuracies.  

2. Many critics complain that they came into “A Complete Unknown” not understanding Dylan and left in the same state. To these critics I say, “Pay attention!” In the scene after Dylan meets Guthrie and Seeger, Mangold has Dylan spend the night at Seeger’s house. In the morning, while Seeger and his family are eating breakfast, Dylan completes the lyrics to “Girl from the North country.” Throughout the movie, Dylan is shown compulsively writing out lyrics. It is Director Mangold’s way of illustrating that Dylan has a prodigious gift/curse: lyrics fill his brain all the time. (BTW: in 2016, Dylan won the Nobel Prize for Literature for these lyrics.) 

Earlier in the same scene with Seeger, they are driving to his house. Dylan turns on the car radio and a Little Richard song is heard. Seeger disparages the song; Dylan defends it. Seeger’s idea of proper music is restricted, Dylan’s expansive. At the end of “A Complete Unknown” Dylan has decided that folk music is too confining and serenades the 1965 Newport Folk Festival with his wider vision. 

Is” A Complete Unknown” the best movie of the year? I don’t know how to compare it to Anora, Conclave, Dune 2, Inside-Out 2, and Wicked. They all seem great to me. 

I do know that “A complete Unknown” is an excellent movie with a terrific cast. Besides Chalamet, I was taken by Edward Norton’s portrayal of Pete Seeger, which also seems Oscar worthy. Monica Barbaro is great as Joan Baez. 

Bottom line: Bob Dylan is a genius but not a nice guy. Miles Davis was a genius but not a nice guy. The same can be said for Pablo Picasso and many other gifted artists. Does this mean we should excuse their boorish behavior? No. But it does mean that we should empathize with them. And we should appreciate geniuses like Bruce Springsteen who manage to create great music and be nice guys