Review: I'm Not There

If you're a fan of the music of Bob Dylan, and/or you can handle films that are incredibly thought-provoking but not necessarily all that... linear (to put it mildly), then I'm Not There may just be a hit with you!

I really enjoyed both the Todd Haynes film itself and the DVD extras that came on the "Two-Disc Collector's Edition," but I'm not sure that they're for everyone. The soundtrack features an impressive array of Dylan songs, many of them reinterpreted and covered by others (including Calexico, who deliver a haunting version of "Goin' to Acapulco" from The Basement Tapes), but of course if you're not into Dylan's material, that's hardly a selling point. Also noteworthy were "Pressing On" (from Dylan's gospel period), "When the Ship Comes In" (sung emphatically by young lead actor Marcus Carl Franklin) and "Ballad of a Thin Man" (which I'd always thought was called "Mister Jones" until I watched one of the Special Features on the DVD... the things you can learn from these little discs!). It isn't very often that I'm inclined to buy a movie soundtrack, but this time I just might.

As for the "storyline" (such as it is), it gets high points for its uniqueness, even if there weren't anything else to recommend about it (and there is). Writer/director Haynes takes a metaphor - the singer's shape-shifting-like penchant for reinventing himself every few years - and makes it flesh in the form of six "faces" of Dylan's: Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Heath Ledger, Richard Gere, Ben Whishaw and the aforementioned Marcus Carl Franklin all personify aspects of the man. It's an original approach that has to be seen to be appreciated, but it's also uneven at times. The Richard Gere scenes featuring an aging outlaw named "Billy the Kid," in particular, seem to require more than a passing familiarity with the folk/rock/gospel singer's background to really see the point of. On the other hand, I absolutely loved the Blanchett, Bale and Ledger parts, and eventually developed some fondness for what was going on with Franklin.

I went into the film more than a little curious as to how a woman (Cate B) could play the part of a male singer (Bob D), and came out of it thunderstruck by what an amazing casting choice that turned out to be. As Haynes says on one of the DVD interviews, Dylan exhibited such a feminine, skinny, folded-into-oneself persona around the time of his poorly-received conversion to electric music (to the cry of "Judas!" in one famous concert) that having him portrayed by a female made perfect sense. And Blanchett is note-perfect in I'm Not There, well deserving of her Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomimation. The flat voice that she employs throughout was an excellent device for helping us forget that "that guy's a chick" and just focus on the acting display.

There are no shortage of great scenes, including Jude Quinn (the Blanchett-Dylan) and Allen Ginsberg (played by David Cross) delivering one-liners to a huge Christ-on-a-crucifix statue up on a hill ("How does it feeeeel?" and "Why don't you do your early stuff?") and Bale as Pastor John, preaching to a group of a couple dozen faithful before breaking into song.

If you can open your mind and get past the need for a coherent story thread (which you won't really find, or at least I didn't) then you'll have a great ride, complete with outstanding tunes. On the other hand, if that doesn't sound like you, then I'd say stay away from I'm Not There and look elsewhere for your kicks.

Rating: *** 1/2