Here in Minnesota, we love Bob Dylan. We also love James Mangold (Logan) and Timothée Chalamet (Interstellar). At least, that's what I think. When Mangold decided to make his Bob Dylan biopic and cast Chalamet in the lead role, I knew he had the right look and I was also curious to see if he could navigate Dylan's unique, iconic and inventive musical catalog. I'm happy to report that Chalamet once again entertained audiences with a performance that explored the unique and controversial topic of using electric instruments. Watch A Complete Unknown 2024 on Theflixtor.
Bob Dylan (Chalamet) arrives in New York to meet his idol Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy, Argo) and also befriends folk musician Pete Seeger (Edward Norton, Fight Club). Dylan becomes an original and memorable presence in the folk music world, and as his popularity grows, he finds his evolving musical style clashing with that of the more traditional folk musicians around him.
It's easy to praise Chalamet's performance in A Complete Unknown, and he's great, but the film also surrounds him with a cast of top-notch actors. Edward Norton dives into the role of Pete Seeger, something he's never played before. For a second I thought this was the same actor from Fight Club, and struggled to recognize it. Monica Barbaro, who gave a solid performance in Top Gun: Maverick, shines as Joan Baez, perfectly capturing the look and feel of the musician. And then there's Boyd Holbrook (Indiana Jones and Titanic) as Johnny Cash. For a while, the character of Cash was shrouded in mystery, and I wonder if Mangold somehow convinced Joaquin Phoenix to return. When I found out Boyd Holbrook had taken the role, I was amazed at how seamlessly he transformed into Cash, and how he was able to match Phoenix's great performance despite having much less screen time.
I'm glad the end credits of "A Complete Unknown" put more emphasis on the musical performances, because I assumed a lot of it was recorded by the original artists. When dealing with legendary singers, technique can make or break a performance, but in this film, all four main musicians excel at imitating the real voices. What also struck me was that Mangold managed to find two great Johnny Cash performances in his career: Joaquin Phoenix in 2005's Walk the Line and Holbrook in this one.