GENRE:
Biopic Drama
RATING:
PG (should be PG-13) for language
RUNTIME:
2 hours and 21 minutes
PLATFORM:
Movie Theatre
STARRING:
Timothee Chalamet (Dune, Call Me by
Your Name, Wonka)
Edward
Norton (Fight Club, Glass Onion); Elle
Fanning (Super 8, The Great)
DIRECTOR:
James Mangold (Walk the Line, Logan, Ford
v Ferrari)
WRITERS:
Mangold (Cop Land) & Jay Cocks (Gangs of New York, Silence)
PLOT:
Newcomer Bob Dylan breaks into the folk scene before transitioning to electric
and bunch of stuff in between.
FULL DISCLOSURE: Didn’t know much about Bob Dylan, just some songs.
STORY STUFF: I love seeing movies that explore the creative process. Watching Chalamet channel Bob Dylan writing his now famous songs and working things out on his guitar gets my creative blood pumping. I did not know about Dylan’s history so I found myself enjoying the ride. Afterward, I found out that most of the story is pretty accurate. There are some amalgamated characters and events to condense the storyline but that is okay as this is not a documentary and I’m fine with the building of the dramatic scenes. The climactic Newport festival where Dylan goes electric is done very well and kind of reminded me of the recent Elvis movie where he decides to do things differently as well. The movie is a tad long but I enjoyed the journey and singing.
ACTING STUFF: Chalamet is electric as Bob Dylan (pun intended). The voice sounds Dylan-esque and he is totally believable as the folk singer. There are times I forgot it was him playing Dylan. The other stand out for me was Norton as Pete Seeger. He does something with his face to make this folk singer look so earnest and supportive. Norton brings this great calmness and made me want to know more about his story. I think Chalamet and Norton should be getting some Oscar nominations for their work. Elle Fanning does a good job as the fictional Sylvie Russo probably based on Suze Rotolo. I don’t like the character at all but I appreciate the work Fanning put into it. Same goes for Monica Barbaro who has a beautiful voice as Joan Baez; I just have never been a Baez fan.
ARTISTIC STUFF: I am always impressed with the production design of making famous New York city streets look like old vibrant postcards. The look is incredible but it is the music that blows you away. All the actors are singing their hearts out and it sounds fantastic. I gotta listen to some more Dylan.
VERDICT:
Four and half stars out of five
SEE IT IF:
You want to know more about Bob Dylan
UPCOMING REVIEW: Best of 2024
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