A Complete Unknown

We follow Bob Dylan during the first four years of his career, from his arrival in New York to the beginning of his electric period. We observe his love life, his encounters with other folk musicians and above all – a lot of music.

Some 20 years after Walk the Line (2005), James Mangold returns with a biopic about another musical great from the same period: Bob Dylan. Based on Elijah Wald’s book Dylan Goes Electric (2015), we follow Dylan over a four-year period. From his arrival in New York in 1961, where his first encounter with his musical hero Woody Guthrie took place, to his 1965 performance, in which Dylan breaks away from his acoustic beginnings and embarks on an electric path with a full band.

Timothée Chalamet portrays a convincing Dylan in search of his own path, troubled by increasing pressure from those around him. Johnny Cash, Dave Van Ronk and other musicians also pass in review. In particular, a father figure in the form of modern folk singer Pete Seeger, beautifully brought to life by Edward Norton. As in Walk the Line, Dylan’s turbulent love life also plays a major role here. While composing, we see how he moves back and forth between Sylvie Russo and Joan Baez, unable to make a choice.