AVON AND WARWICK SHOWCASE

A COMPLETE UNKNOWN
* * * ½
(Dylan from 1961-66)

Timothée Chalamet gives a stunning performance as folk legend Bob Dylan during a crucial time in his early career.

The 2-hour-and-20-minute movie opens with a 19-year-old Bobby Dylan arriving in New York City from Minnesota and being taken under the wing of folk legend Pete Seeger (Edward Norton).

Bobby meets his hero, Woody Guthrie, who is on his death bed, is introduced around the Greenwich Village folk community and gets his start at Folk City.

If you like folk music, especially the early music of Dylan and Joan Baez, you’ll love this biopic.

All this plays out during the turbulent sixties: the Viet Nam war, student protests, and commie-hunting among the liberal folkies.

We follow Dylan’s love affairs (which I found a bit confusing at times) and his difficulties dealing with sudden fame.

Dylan was deeply conflicted over the attention given to him and often reacted standoffish and negative.

It all comes down to the big point in music history when he plugs in at the Newport Music Festival and draws strong negative and some positive reaction.

We must wait for the credits to remind us of what happened to Dylan, Baez, Seeger and the other folkies.

Hearing the old folk songs, like “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” and “This Land is Your Land” is a big plus.

The depiction of the Newport Music Festival bears no resemblance to the City by the Sea.

I saw Dylan in Newport years later when he became more arrogant and angry, refusing to meet with the press and ordering that no photos be taken.