The shifting personas and mythology of Bob Dylan are explored through an assortment of fictional characters in different settings.
Writer-director Todd Haynes is a key figure in the New Queer Cinema movement of the 1990's, and is responsible for such titles as Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story, Safe, Poison, Velvet Goldmine, and his breakthrough Far From Heaven. Not a lifelong Dylan fan, Haynes had an awakening with the artist's work during a long road trip, and came up with the idea for a unconventional biopic.
Haynes' novel idea was to cast six different actors to loosely represent the various stages of Dylan's career, personal life, and public image: a young troubadour, the 60's protest singer, a confrontational poet, a bitter actor, a born-again Christian, a fugitive cowboy, etc. After Haynes submitted a one-page proposal to Dylan, the musician gave his approval for the project and allowed the use of his music in the film.
The film makes no attempt to construct a literal telling of Dylan's life (his youth in Minnesota or his introduction to the Greenwich Village folk scene, e.g.), as the artist himself often dodged these types of direct questions in interviews. Haynes sidesteps and subverts standard biography by cross-cutting between the various stand-ins as well as "mockumentary" footage, and the result is less the story of one man than a look at the rise and fall of counterculture in post-war America through the lens of its most fascinating icon.
Haynes chose to shoot each section of the film in a different style, and in addition to switching between black & white and color, paid homage to the work of Jean-Luc Godard, Federico Fellini, and some of the revisionist westerns of the late 60's-early 70's. Haynes' former collaborator Edward Lachman provided the cinematography. Appearing as various "Dylans" are Heath Ledger, Christian Bale, Richard Gere, Ben Whishaw, Marcus Carl Franklin, and controversially, Cate Blanchett. The cast also includes David Cross, Michelle Williams, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Julianne Moore, and Sonic Youth frontwoman Kim Gordon. Narration was provided by Kris Kristofferson, a fellow musician and icon in his own right, who had played and acted alongside Dylan in the past.
After a successful festival run including awards at the Venice Film Festival, I'm Not There opened to enthusiastic reviews from many prominent critics, and placed on notable year-end Top 10 lists. Cate Blanchett received the bulk of the praise directed at the film and took away a slew of Supporting Actress wins from critics groups, as well as a Golden Globe win and an Academy Award nomination. The film itself was nominated for five Independent Spirit Awards including Best Film and Best Director.
Running time is 2 hrs, 15 min.
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