I'm Not There (2007)

Ruminations on the life of Bob Dylan, where six characters embody a different aspect of the musician's life and work.

Director:

Todd Haynes

Writers:

Todd Haynes (screenplay), Oren Moverman (screenplay)

Stars:

Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Heath Ledger

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 27 wins & 46 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Cate Blanchett	...	Jude
Ben Whishaw	...	Arthur
Christian Bale	...	Jack / Pastor John
Richard Gere	...	Billy
Marcus Carl Franklin	...	Woody / Chaplin Boy
Heath Ledger	...	Robbie
Kris Kristofferson	...	Narrator (voice)
Don Francks	...	Hobo Joe
Roc LaFortune	...	Hobo Moe
Larry Day	...	Government Agent
Paul Cagelet	...	Carny / Bell-Hop
Brian R.C. Wilmes	...	Circus Man (as Brian RC Wilmes)
Pierre-Alexandre Fortin	...	Gorgeous George
Richie Havens	...	Old Man Arvin
Tyrone Benskin	...	Mr. Arvin

Storyline

Six incarnations of Bob Dylan: an actor, a folk singer, an electrified troubadour, Rimbaud, Billy the Kid, and Woody Guthrie. Put Dylan's music behind their adventures, soliloquies, interviews, marriage, and infidelity. Recreate 1960s documentaries in black and white. Put each at a crossroads, the artist becoming someone else. Jack, the son of Ramblin' Jack Elliott, finds Jesus; handsome Robbie falls in love then abandons Claire. Woody, a lad escaped from foster care, hobos the U.S. singing; Billy awakes in a valley threatened by a six-lane highway; Rimbaud talks. Jude, booed at Newport when he goes electric, fences with reporters, pundits, and fans. He won't be classified.

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Plot Keywords:

1960s | actor | reporter | riding the rails | horseback riding | 

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Taglines:

All I Can Do Is Be Me Whoever That Is

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music | Western

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, some sexuality and nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Bim Distribuzione [Italy] Diaphana [France]

Country:

Germany Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 December 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

I'm Not There

Filming Locations:

Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$730,819, 22 November 2007, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$4,017,609, 28 July 2012

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$11,664,116, 28 July 2012

Company Credits

Production Co:

Killer Films,John Wells Productions,John Goldwyn Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

135 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White (partly) Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the "Jude" storyline, when Jude Quinn is revealed to have originally been Aaron Jacob Edlestein in high school, the picture shows Christian Bale although the "Dylan" in this storyline is played by Cate Blanchett.

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Goofs

The phone at the Peacocks house is too modern for the time - the cord going into the handset had a clip in cord versus being attached directly to the piece.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: There he lies. God rest his soul, and his rudeness. A devouring public can now share the remains of his sickness, and his phone numbers. There he lay: poet, prophet, outlaw, fake, star of electricity. Nailed by a peeping tom, who would soon discover...
Jude: A poem is like a naked person...
Narrator:

• even the ghost was more than one person.

Arthur: ...but a song is something that walks by itself.

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Connections

References Serpico (1973)

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Soundtracks

I'm Not There
Performed by Bob Dylan
Written by Bob Dylan
Published by Dwarf Music (SESAC)
Courtesy of Columbia Records
By Arrangement with Sony BMG Music Entertainment

User Reviews

Loving but incoherent homage

It would be far too simplistic to say that there's an 85 min film starring Cate Blanchett trying to fight its way out of this. I mean, I rather like Haynes' basic conceit of having a dovetailed selection of fictionalised biopic. At one end is the immature, unselfconscious Marcus Carl Franklin as a Woody Guthrielyte; at the other Richard Gere as a schizophrenic samurai of civil rights. In between are conventional characterisations of Bob Dylan from Christian Bale (Julianne Moore entirely acceptable as a Baez-a-like) and an extraordinary cinematic cloning from Cate Blanchett. Heath Ledger's actor and Ben Whishaw's poet-abstraction are less well incorporated into the film's fabric.

In fact, there's simply no fabric to weave into. Total immersion takes over - and its as if there's a seventh character, the over reverent director with his Kristofferson voice-over trying to be Dylan and consuming any clarity there might have been. It's formless, directionless - voiceless.

There's some lovely photography and a great sense for the recreation of period footage as well as a heroic performance from Bruce Greenwood, a useful critic-trope abandoned by Haynes. But this is simply seasoning in a badly undercooked dish. 3/10