My first reaction? A Bob Dylan biopic? I’m in! But when I saw that Timothée Chalamet had been cast as the lead, skepticism set in. Don’t get me wrong—I admired Chalamet in Call Me by Your Name, Dune, and, oddly enough, Wonka. But Bob Dylan? That seemed like a stretch. I had a similar reaction when Jason Segel was cast as David Foster Wallace in The End of the Tour. Yet, just as Segel transformed into Wallace with an uncanny authenticity, Chalamet dissolves into Dylan so completely that my doubts quickly faded.
Directed by James Mangold, A Complete Unknown reveals a dimension of Chalamet’s talent that audiences haven’t fully explored, marking a potential turning point in his evolution into the rarified ranks of Leonardo DiCaprio and Johnny Depp. There seem to be two prevailing approaches to biopics: the first, casting an actor who physically resembles the icon and perfecting the mimicry—think Jamie Foxx in Ray or Austin Butler in Elvis. The second, which I find far more compelling, is to entrust the role to the most talented actor available and let them offer their interpretation. Joaquin Phoenix’s Johnny Cash in Walk the Line and Robert De Niro’s Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull come to mind. Chalamet’s Dylan belongs firmly in this latter category.
The supporting cast is equally electric. Boyd Holbrook brings a magnetic presence as Johnny Cash, Monica Barbaro is captivating as Joan Baez, and Elle Fanning perfectly embodies Suze Rotolo, Dylan’s girlfriend and the woman immortalized on the cover of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (1963). One of my personal highlights is Ed Norton as Pete Seeger—there’s a fleeting moment in which his aversion to being hugged is so palpable, it reminded me of how much I need more Ed Norton in my life.
Yes, we’re drowning in content these days, but if you’re a Dylan fan, I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t love this film.