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a complete unknown

If you were a young person during the 60’s, then you are going to appreciate watching Timothée Chalamet portray Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown. He has captured Dylan perfectly, both in voice and in body—his gestures and facial expressions spot on. As an actor, Chalamet is a wonder. The film took me back immediately to my youth and when I heard the songs again, I shed tears as I sang along, none too quietly, I might add. 

I learned things from the film I hadn’t realized, growing up and then living in rural towns where the only radio station played country-western music. I don’t remember knowing about his romantic and musical collaborations with Joan Baez. I certainly knew about her songs—I memorized and sang many of them, plunking on my guitar. I knew and loved Woody Guthrie and sang his songs, too, but again, I hadn’t known Dylan’s relationship with either of them. I knew nothing about his first girlfriend, Suze, although in the movie she’s called Sylvie.

There simply wasn’t a lot of modern music to be heard in my wee towns unless it was on Casey Kasem’s Top 40 on Saturdays or American Bandstand on TV. Those were the only places I heard Dylan’s music and it was difficult to catch all the lyrics back then. I did know and sing the most folk music-y popular ones with my friends who played music, ones like “Blowin’ in the Wind,” and “Times, They Are A-Changin’.” Other songs I heard way, way later, for example, “Like A Rollin’ Stone.” Some of his early songs I hadn’t heard at all until seeing this film. 

As I listened to the music, I realized how entirely appropriate to our times were some of the lyrics:

  “…And accept it that soon/ You’ll be drenched to the bone/ If your time to you is worth savin’/ And you better start swimmin’ or you’ll sink like a stone/ For the times they are a-changin. Come senators, congressmen/ Please heed the call/ Don’t stand in the doorway/ Djon’t block up the hall/ For he that gets hurt/ Will be he who has stalled/ The battle outside ragin’/ Will soon shake your windows/ And rattle your walls/ For the times they are a-changin.”

So many things are right about this film—the singing voices of the other actors meant to portray Pete Seeger and Johnny Cash, the yellowish lighting color chosen fits perfectly, as well as the constant cigarette smoking, the overflowing garbage cans and sacks along the sidewalks, the modes of transportation, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the tiny, messy, stuffy apartments. The film also showed little aspects of his being on the spectrum, being so obsessed with his music he treated women he was interested in for the moment so abominably. All the way through the film he seemed mystified when he was called on his behavior. 

One mistake, however, and I see it in so many films meant to portray past times is that when journals, notebooks, magazines, or books are shown, the prop person forgets to make them look new, the way they would have looked at the time. Instead, they are shown old and used, the way they look now, after a number of years. It drives me nuts and stops me from being in the moment. 

Still, because the film is mostly wonderful, I’m willing to forgive small errors, and if you want to see good acting, hear good music, and understand the past, I recommend watching it. It will take you back. 

2 thoughts on “a complete unknown”

  1. I loved the music from mid 60’s. Still do. I agree….I don’t remember a lot of “Bob Dylan” except I felt he was sort of on the ‘beatnik’ side of those days. Definitely all about a message while my favorites were songs ‘that had a good beat and were easy to dance to’. Ha.

  2. My brother has been nagging me to take my musician grandsons to see it but I’m down with the flu this weekend so it’ll have to wait. 😢

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