If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you may recall that I’ve written two other posts about Bob Dylan. Thus, the name of this post. Here’s another one!
I watched two Bob Dylan movies recently. The first, “A Complete Unknown,” inspired me to watch the second, “No Direction Home,” so I could get a better picture of the famous singer who spent his early years in my part of the world. I’m glad I watched both.
Of course, the first movie is the one that’s out in theaters now. It features Timothée Chalamet, the dishy French-American actor who portrays Dylan in his early years. Based on the book, “Dylan Goes Electric,” by Elijah Wald, the story begins with Dylan “escaping” his college experience at the University of Minnesota and traveling to New York City to meet his folk music hero, Woodie Guthrie, who was hospitalized with a neurological illness. Another folkie, Pete Seeger, takes Dylan under his wing, and his rise to stardom begins.
I liked that the story was told mainly through music; this was much more effective than a lot of talking. Chalamet’s portrayal of Dylan is superb as are the performances by the two actresses who portray his love interests from that time: Elle Fanning who plays his girlfriend Suze Rotolo/Sylvie Russo, and Monica Barbaro who plays singer Joan Baez. It helped me understand the pressures Dylan was under as a person and an artist. Even Dylan, who was an executive producer for the movie, liked it, so that’s saying something!
The movie concludes with Dylan’s performance in 1965 at the Newport Folk Festival, where he was backed by an electric band. The audience of folk purists and political activists reacted badly, with booing and shouts. Some people just couldn’t handle that something they loved had changed. As Google says, his performance, “was a shot heard round the world—Dylan’s declaration of musical independence, the end of the folk revival, and the birth of rock as the voice of a generation—and one of the defining moments in twentieth-century music.” There are still people who are upset by what they perceive as Dylan’s turning his back on acoustic folk music and political activism.
As I mentioned, “A Complete Unknown” left me wanting to know more, so I watched “No Direction Home,” a 2005 documentary by Martin Scorsese that’s available through PBS. It follows Dylan’s life for a year longer than the current movie, and features in-person interviews with Dylan, poet Allen Ginsberg, Suze Rotolo, Joan Baez, and Pete Seeger.
Seeing/hearing Dylan describe events from his life in his own words was so interesting! According to Wikipedia, the movie was well-received. It “creates a portrait that is deep, sympathetic, perceptive and yet finally leaves Dylan shrouded in mystery, which is where he properly lives.”
So, if like me, you found yourself wanting more after watching “A Complete Unknown,” I highly recommend “No Direction Home.” It helped me understand why there’s not a snowball’s chance in hell that Dylan will ever come back to Duluth no matter how we try to honor him. (The city has named a street after him, but he didn’t show up, much to the city’s dismay. He didn’t even show up for his Nobel Prize; he sure isn’t going to come back to Duluth!) We need to just leave the man alone.
Also, Suze Rotolo wrote a memoir about her time with Dylan, titled, “A Freewheelin’ Time,” which I plan to read someday.
I still remain happy that I’m not famous like Dylan. See my blog post from 2017 that explains why. Have you seen “A Complete Unknown?” If so, I’d love to hear your thoughts about the movie.
Marie's Meanderings 
I loved A Complete Unknown, and hope it picks up some acknowledgement that the Golden Globes missed by snub! Maybe it’s my age showing, but every song they played (and did so well) was a shot of sweet and often rebellious personal memories.
Another film, “I’m Not There” ( 2007) plays with his elusive side when different actors ( Blanchett, Ledger, Gere to name a few) portray different identities Dylan has been, throughout his career. Which is also another part I really liked about the current film: when he just starts spinning a wild-assed lie to derail a conversation. Hilarious!
I have not heard of “I’m Not There.” Thanks for the recommendation! Are you referring to the carnival reference lie in “A Complete Unknown?” If so, I thought it was pretty astute of Baez to call him out on that.
Can’t recall the specific line you reference, but probably yeah. She’s always seemed to see and call things out for what’s truly going on.
I haven’t seen it yet, Marie, but I sure plan to. Can’t wait, especially after another glowing review!
Yes, Jennifer, please do. You’ll love it!
Howdy. I’ve heard and read nothing but good things about the new Dylan movie. I plan to see it soon.
It’s a good one! Everyone I’ve spoken to about it loved it.
Have you seen the .musical “Girl From the North Country
Oops. Posted too soon. While not about Dylan, it uses his music, with his approval, and is set in Duluth in the 1930s. I enjoyed the music very much.
Hello Marie! No, I have not had the chance to see this musical. I heard that it was filmed, however. Maybe I’ll be able to see that someday. Sounds interesting.
I enjoyed it.
did it seem like the sort of movie that’s better seen at the theater?
The visuals weren’t so stunning that I would say you need to see it in a theater. I think the movie would work fine on a small screen. We went to see it in the theater for something to do over the holiday.
We saw the one about the girl fighter on Xmas. Same thing in terms of seeing big vs small. A good movie though. And Los Angeles has so few pedestrians that it’s fun to go where there are lots of people. There was quite a line for Chinese food afterwards
Interesting that you saw a movie during Christmas, too. We usually don’t do that, but this year’s celebrations were a bit different than usual. Glad that you got to be around others for a while!
A few years ago we decided to skip the family drama and try a “Jewish Christmas” and became converts to the tradition. I was surprised by how many other people were already wise to it, given the many people
Dylan is open-minded and curious. It’s odd that many of his fervent early fans did not understand that about him. Dylan is not someone who can thrive in a box.
That is a very apt description!
I saw A Complete Unknown this weekend, and I loved it!
Oh good! Glad to hear that you liked it.
I’ll see it someday. I like his songs, but when they’re done by other people! I just get this impression of him as a reclusive oddball kind of guy. But what do I know? I should watch the documentary first.
There’s some speculation that Dylan is autistic. That would explain a lot!
I haven’t seen it yet, Marie, but now that I’ve read your review, I want to!
I hope you get to see it! The movie is great.