Product Description: Inspired by the life and songs of Bob Dylan I'm Not There is "a profoundly personal and passionate film" (A.O. Scott The New York Times) that captures the essence of this elusive genius. Six different actors - including Heath Ledger Christian Bale Richard Gere and Oscar nominee Cate Blanchett in a "soon-to-be-legendary performance" (Peter Travers Rolling Stone) - each embody part of the Dylan legend: from Greenwich Village folk singer to electric guitar trailblazer to born-again preacher. Directed by Academy Award nominated writer/director Todd Haynes (Far From Heaven) I'm Not There is "unquestionably the year's most original American movie" (Thelma Adams US Weekly).System Requirements:Running Time: 135 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA/BIOGRAPHY Rating: R UPC: 796019810906 Manufacturer No: 81090
Amazon.com: Unapologetically audacious, I'm Not There is more post-modern puzzle than by-the-numbers biopic. A title card sets the scene: "Inspired by the music and many lives of Bob Dylan." Yet the film features no figure by that name. Instead, writer/director Todd Haynes presents six characters, each incarnating different stages in the artist's career. Perfume's Ben Whishaw, a black-clad poet, serves as a slippery sort of narrator. The action begins with the wanderings of an 11-year-old black runaway named "Woody Guthrie" (Marcus Carl Franklin)--his raucous duet with Richie Havens on "Tombstone Blues" is a highlight--and ends with a silver-haired Billy the Kid (Richard Gere) watching the Old West die before his eyes. In the interim, there's the folk singer-turned-preacher (Christian Bale), the actor (Heath Ledger), and the rock star (Cate Blanchett, who has Don't Look Back Dylan down to a science). The chronology is purposefully non-linear, and editor Jay Rabinowitz cuts rapidly, Jean-Luc Godard-style, between cinéma vérité black-and-white and saturated color, Richard Lester-like slapstick and Fellini-inspired surrealism (Ed Lachman served as cinematographer).
What makes the picture fun for Dylan fans--and potentially frustrating for neophytes--is that every album and movie bears an alternate title. Ledger's Robbie, for instance, stars in "Grain of Sand," actually a reference to the Pete Seeger song. As in Haynes' glam rock reverie Velvet Goldmine, the trickery involves the entire cast. While Julianne Moore plays former lover Alice, a dead ringer for Joan Baez; Michelle Williams embodies elusive scenester Coco, i.e. Edie Sedgwick. If I'm Not There is less affecting than Control, the year's other big music film, it rewards repeat viewings like few biographical features. The soundtrack mixes originals with covers, like Jim James's heartfelt "Goin' to Acapulco." --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - DVD
DVD arrived in a very timely manner and was in excellent condition. Exactly as described.
Rating: - Enormous letdown
I've been a big Todd Haynes fan since Safe and a big Christian Bale fan since the Land of Faraway. What a letdown. "Artsy" doesn't capture the pretentiousness of this film. If you wanna know the 'essence' ... Read More
Rating: - What a yawner!
Had high hopes, watched it for about 20 minutes and was bored out of my mind!
Rating: - No narrative mechanism.
I just saw "I'm Not There." My conclusion: it fails on multiple levels. For one it is completely imbued with a film-school experimental ambiance that does not translate into what a mainstream biopic should ... Read More
Rating: - Waste of time
Nothing can save this movie: not a cast of talented actors and not even a good soundtrack. I was confused about this movie from the start. So many of the actors are Bob Dylan - who is not Bob Dylan, but has ... Read More
- DVD
- Enormous letdown