I'm Not There--Dylan

[jchitty]

For months, I've wanted to see the movie, "I'm Not There"....the movie inspired by the life and songs of Dylan. It was in theaters in my area for only fifteen minutes, I believe. I just finished watching the DVD. At first, I HATED this movie. It was so convoluted, cerebral, artsy....just plain hard to understand. But eventually, things started to sink in. Six different actors play a stage in Dylan's life. They all have different names than Dylan, but they are all characters based on his early years, folk singer phase, his electric phase, born again preacher phase, etc.I've always loved Dylan, but I never quite got who he was in interviews...he is such an enigma. I got a better understanding of who he was after this film, even though Dylan is a man who didn't care if he was understood.....and maybe that's the way we should leave him. Cate Blanchett deserved an academy award for this part....she was nominated, but of course, she didn't receive it. She played Dylan (different name, but still Dylan) so authentically that she WAS Dylan. I'd imagine it would be hard part for a male actor to play, let alone a woman.Anyway, I'd give this move a thumbs up if you can get past some of the more confusing parts of it. I ended up liking it actually after a really fitful start.

[billg]

Boy Chits, that is sure a strange movie! I'm like you, had a hard time at first & didn't really like the movie until after I got home & thought about it. One thing is for sure, whether the movie is "good" or "bad" can be argued but cate Blanchette's performance is amazing. You're right, she absolutely deserved the award.

[jchitty]

May 30, 2008, 11:47am, billg wrote:Boy Chits, that is sure a strange movie! I'm like you, had a hard time at first & didn't really like the movie until after I got home & thought about it. One thing is for sure, whether the movie is "good" or "bad" can be argued but cate Blanchette's performance is amazing. You're right, she absolutely deserved the award.Yep, Cate was ripped off by the Oscars....she really was the highlight of "I'm Not There." If not for her, I don't know if I would have understood as much as I did about BD. One thing I did after I watched the DVD yesterday was to watch some old interviews with Dylan on You Tube. A lot of his words from those interviews made it into Cate Blanchett's dialouge of course. I used to think Dylan was an asshole really, although I was crazy about his music. Now I just look at him as a man who was overwhelmed by his fame. Looks like the 'voice of his generation' just wanted to be a good musician not hounded by the press and the image they gave him. But his brilliance just coudn't be denied.

[liamkelly]

May 30, 2008, 1:12pm, jchitty wrote:May 30, 2008, 11:47am, billg wrote:Boy Chits, that is sure a strange movie! I'm like you, had a hard time at first & didn't really like the movie until after I got home & thought about it. One thing is for sure, whether the movie is "good" or "bad" can be argued but cate Blanchette's performance is amazing. You're right, she absolutely deserved the award.Yep, Cate was ripped off by the Oscars....she really was the highlight of "I'm Not There." If not for her, I don't know if I would have understood as much as I did about BD. One thing I did after I watched the DVD yesterday was to watch some old interviews with Dylan on You Tube. A lot of his words from those interviews made it into Cate Blanchett's dialouge of course. I used to think Dylan was an asshole really, although I was crazy about his music. Now I just look at him as a man who was overwhelmed by his fame. Looks like the 'voice of his generation' just wanted to be a good musician not hounded by the press and the image they gave him. But his brilliance just coudn't be denied. Not the first time Cate has been robbed IMVHO She should've got the nod for Elizabeth when Paltrow got it for Shakespeare In Love.I took my son to see the new Indiana Jones today (after his EXCELLENT Beatles concert ) and Cate was the evil baddie. Good fun all 'round Back to Dylan. I read Chronicles a few months ago. Is 'I'm Not There' a sort of screen adaptation of this?Like you, Chits, I could never fathom if Dylan was deliberately difficult publicly to polish his image or whether he just didn't get or want the media interest in him.Liam

[jchitty]

May 30, 2008, 2:01pm, liamkelly wrote:May 30, 2008, 1:12pm, jchitty wrote:Yep, Cate was ripped off by the Oscars....she really was the highlight of "I'm Not There." If not for her, I don't know if I would have understood as much as I did about BD. One thing I did after I watched the DVD yesterday was to watch some old interviews with Dylan on You Tube. A lot of his words from those interviews made it into Cate Blanchett's dialouge of course. I used to think Dylan was an asshole really, although I was crazy about his music. Now I just look at him as a man who was overwhelmed by his fame. Looks like the 'voice of his generation' just wanted to be a good musician not hounded by the press and the image they gave him. But his brilliance just coudn't be denied. Not the first time Cate has been robbed IMVHO She should've got the nod for Elizabeth when Paltrow got it for Shakespeare In Love.I took my son to see the new Indiana Jones today (after his EXCELLENT Beatles concert ) and Cate was the evil baddie. Good fun all 'round Back to Dylan. I read Chronicles a few months ago. Is 'I'm Not There' a sort of screen adaptation of this?Like you, Chits, I could never fathom if Dylan was deliberately difficult publicly to polish his image or whether he just didn't get or want the media interest in him.LiamI know, Liam, isn't it sad? Cate's the most versatile actor on the planet, sigh. I saw the new Indy movie last weekend. I really enjoyed it too...I thought it was great. Some of the critics have panned it, but I didn't see it that way. I thought it was better than number 2 and number 3, and almost as good as the original. It's my understanding that some people took issue with the ending (won't post any spoilers, hehe) but afterall, it's fantasy. Cate was great as the Evil KGB agent, hehe. My hubby has a crush on her, I think. I've never read The Chronicles, so I'm not sure if "I'm Not There" is the screen adaptation...maybe Brad can chime in? Since he's the trivia master.

[jchitty]

I'd like to add that I forgot to mention that Heath Ledger also played one of the Dylan parts....I'm older of course, so therefore, that's of more interest to the younger folks, but it was so sad to see him pass away....such a talented actor. Don't know when the new Batman movie will be released, but I've heard it's pretty scary.

[edteja]

Chits didn't you get a sense of Dylan from the interviews in NO DIRECTION HOME? I thought that gave a real insightful look at a lot of the sides of a complex character. I haven't seen this movie though.

[cameron]

I hated it too... at the beginning, middle AND end! Sorry... just didn't get it at all. My girlfriend and I both enjoy "artsy" independent movies and both of us like Dylan (except perhaps his harmonica playing) but even Cate's performance couldn't salvage it for us.Cameron

[jchitty]

May 31, 2008, 6:57am, edteja wrote:Chits didn't you get a sense of Dylan from the interviews in NO DIRECTION HOME? I thought that gave a real insightful look at a lot of the sides of a complex character. I haven't seen this movie though.Hey, Ed, NO DIRECTION HOME was the special that came on PBS not too long ago, right? I did watch parts of it, if that's the one you're referring too....sorry, my memory is fading. I did get a better sense of Dylan through watching it, but I didn't watch the whole thing I must confess. Dylan just seems so mysterious to me still, but also simple and direct too...he's a contradiction, that's for sure. Cameron....I can understand....it wasn't until the end that I warmed to this movie. I thought it would just be a movie about Dylan's life, laid out in regular fashion, so that's one thing that bothered me when I first started watching it. It was very confusing.

[liamkelly]

I've googled Chronicles and it seems what I read was Chronicles Vol 1. I wasn't aware that there is (may be) others The article I read mentioned that in the book Dylan had said that in many of his recordings he tried to deliberately write in a way that would lose the 'voice of a generation' image he had acquired. I had forgotten this, I admit.Makes you wonder what he would've produced had he embraced the mantle. Or maybe the fear of it is what produced the great songs that he wrote later - like on Desire or Infidels for example. I dunno.Have to confess to be totally intrigued about the movie now after Chits' and Cameron's comments Does it cover his whole life to date?Liam