A Complete Unknown

The story of Bob Dylan’s arrival in New York, meteoric rise as a folk megastar and his rejection of the mantle of ‘the voice of the generation’ in order to embrace the power of rock and roll is well worn, yet entirely brought to life by Timothée Chalamet in this new biopic. Puckish, irreverent but entirely struck by the muse, Dylan is accompanied by Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro) and girlfriend Sylvia (Elle Fanning), more than female foils but rounded figures taking their own paths as Dylan writes his way into the history books, leading to the fateful night at the Newport Festival where he donned an electric guitar and tossed aside his legacy.

While Dylan – both as a documentary and fictional subject – is no stranger to the screen, James Mangold is the rare director with the pedigree to take on a figure of such significance and elusiveness. Having delivered the electric Johnny Cash biopic I Walk the Line, he brings a rare sensitivity to this subject, delivering moments etched into the public imagination as though they are unfolding in front of us. Timothée Chalamet now marks himself out as one of the actors of his generation in what is more than an imitation, but a thorough embodiment of one of the towering figures of popular music as he risks it all.