I'm Not There. (2007)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Todd Haynes

Writers:

Todd Haynes (screenplay) &
Oren Moverman (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

21 November 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Music

Tagline:

All I Can Do Is Be Me Whoever That Is

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Bob Dylan | Artist | Interview | 1960s | Hobo

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 14 wins & 11 nominations

Cast

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

Also Known As:

I'm Not There (Germany) (USA) (poster title)
I'm Not There: Suppositions on a Film Concerning Dylan (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, some sexuality and nudity.

Runtime:

135 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Canada:14A | Finland:K-11 | Germany:12 | Sweden:7 | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:15 | Brazil:12 | Netherlands:12 | UK:15 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Hong Kong:IIB

Filming Locations:

Brigham, Québec, Canada

Company:

Killer Films

Trivia:

Todd Haynes needed to get approval from Bob Dylan to use his music, since (unlike in his Velvet Goldmine (1998) where David Bowie did not give his permission for his music) he felt the film would not work without it. At the encouragement of Dylan's manager, Haynes wrote a one-page summary of his concept and the characters, which Dylan approved. It took another 6 years to get the film made due to funding difficulties.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): During the sequence when Robbie and Claire buy the motorcycle, Robbie gets out of the car to sit on the motorcycle and even though he locks the car, he leaves the headlights on.

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.

Movie Connections:

References Masculin féminin: 15 faits précis (1966)

Soundtrack:

Visions of Johanna

Saviors Grow Fast Asleep

Saw this at the Toronto Film Festival. I really liked it, although maybe the Richard Gere scenes are the one's to skip, though it's not really his fault. Cate Blanchett is getting a lot of buzz for her performance, and she deserves it. The actors are all playing versions of Dylan, though their characters have different names. Blanchett plays an incarnation of Dylan that would be right around the time of "Don't Look Back".

Although I think Todd Haynes is mostly successful here, I fear that this will be a film that will really interest people who already know about Bob Dylan, and that it will sort of fly over the heads of everyone else. A good movie, and a nice place to start if you're a young movie lover who wants to expand and see something less conventional.