Susan Granger’s review of “A Complete Unknown” (Searchlight Pictures)
Timothee Chalamet delivers an amazing performance as young Bob Dylan in James Mangold’s “A Complete Unknown,” which chronicles 19-year-old Dylan’s arrival in New York – after hitchhiking from Minnesota in 1961 – and his rapid rise to fame as a folk singer/songwriter, culminating with his dicey choice – four years later – to transition into a rock star.
Dylan’s first stop is a hospital in New Jersey to meet his hero, bedridden Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy), suffering from Huntington’s disease, whose other visitor is veteran folksinger Pete Seeger (Edward Norton). After listening to Dylan sing and play his acoustic guitar, they acknowledge his talent and become his mentors.
Thanks to Seeger, Dylan turn out to be an overnight success, managed by Albert Grossman (Dan Fogler) and encouraged by musicologist Alan Lomax (Norbert Leo Butz), who loves his “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “The Times They Are A-Changin.”
Meanwhile, Dylan moves in with activist/artist Sylvie Russo (Dakota Fanning) at 161 W. Fourth Street in Greenwich Village; she inspires him with ideas for songs. Their liaison lasts until she goes out of town and he hooks up with established folk artist Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro), personally and professionally.
(Sylvie stands in for Suze Rotolo; Dylan specifically asked Mangold – who adapted Elijah Wald’s 2015 best-seller “Dylan Goes Electric!” with Jay Cocks – not to use Suze’s real name.)
The climax of the film is a near-riot at the ‘65 Newport Folk Festival because self-absorbed Dylan, despite being the folk genre’s highly-advertised closing act. wanted to acknowledge his artistic evolution by playing new rock ‘n’ roll songs on his recently acquired electric guitar.
FYI: The original title for this film was “Going Electric.”
Displaying incredible mastery of Dylan’s raspy nasal twang – after working with vocal coach Eric Vetro – 28-year-old Chalamet’s impersonation is remarkable; as for his guitar mastery, he studied for five years with Larry Saltzman.
And he’s been endorsed by the 83-year-old Nobel Prize-winning legend who wrote on X: “Timmy’s a brilliant actor so I’m sure he’s going to be completely believable as me. Or a younger me. Or some other me.”
Nods also to Boyd Holbrook as supportive Johnny Cash and to production designer Francois Audouy’s meticulous authenticity.
On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “A Complete Unknown” is a scruffy, scrappy, if sanitized 7, playing in theaters.
