Warning: This article contains spoilers for A Complete Unknown!
A Complete Unknownexplores the life of the enigmatic Bob Dylan in the 1960s, and the musician’s true story is just as fascinating as the movie. Though many musicians have had an impact on their genre, Bob Dylan is easily considered one of the most prolific singers of all time, having a long-term effect on both the folk and rock genres. Despite this, he’s also developed a reputation as an enigma. He guards his personal life, typically refuses to explain his lyrics, and has a history of fabricating information about his experiences.
Manymovies about Bob Dylanhave leaned into this mysterious image, butA Complete Unknownattempts to provide a more intimate picture of Dylan’s early career, focusing on the musician’s loneliness and desperation to escape. However, while leaning into emotional truths,A Complete Unknownleaves out some of the most interesting elements of Bob Dylan’s life. That being said, the film opens the door for curious viewers to learn the true story.
A Complete Unknown Explores Bob Dylan’s Life From 1961 To 1965
The Bob Dylan Biopic Only Looks At His Early Career
Even though Bob Dylan’s career has spanned from 1961 to the present day, the Bob Dylan biopic, starring Timothée Chalamet, focuses on the first five years of his career. The movie opens with him arriving in New York, and it ends just after the controversial 1965 Newport Folk Festival, where Bob Dylan “went electric.”
Where To Watch A Complete Unknown On Streaming
A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet as the iconic folk musician Bob Dylan, is one of the final awards season releases of 2024.
Because this is the time period for the film, viewers will get to see his Greenwich Village days. The NYC area was the hub of the American folk revival in the 1960s, which explains why musicians like Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, and Bob Neuwirth appear in the movie. However, some influential groups like The Kingston Trio, The Almanac Singers, and The Weavers are left out to maintain the focus on Bob Dylan. The people who appear in A Complete Unknown had a direct impact on Dylan’s life during these years.
Bob Dylan Was In A Relationship With Suze Rotolo In The 1960s
Suze Rotolo First Met Bob Dylan In 1961
Shortly after Bob Dylan arrived in New York City, the 20-year-old musician met 17-year-old Suze Rotolo, and the two quickly fell in love. The pair moved into a Greenwich Village apartment together. While he pursued his music career, she took on a job at the Congress of Racial Equality, a job that fit with her political activism. Throughout their relationship, Rotolo reportedly influenced Dylan’s music, and she appeared on the cover of his albumThe Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. The two continued their relationship until early 1964, but the last year of their romance was turbulent due to his fame and his affair with Joan Baez.
A Complete Unknown DP Phedon Papamichael Reveals How Timothée Chalamet “Disappeared” Into Bob Dylan
A Complete Unknown Director of Photography Phedon Papamichael details how Timothée Chalamet was inspiring as Bob Dylan & pushed for live performances.
Unfortunately, Rotolo lost her identity in others’ eyes, being seen as Bob Dylan’s girlfriend, which she resented. After their breakup, Rotolo became famously tight-lipped about their relationship, maintaining her privacy as she built a career as an artist. However, she finally opened up about their romance in her 2008 memoirA Freewheelin' Time: A Memoir of Greenwich Village in the Sixties.
Because of their romance, fans might be confused when they find out that Bob Dylan has a romance with a character named Sylvie Russo in thecast ofA Complete Unknown. Elle Fanning revealed in an exclusive Q&A during the AMC early access screening on December 18, for whichScreen Rantwas present, thatBob Dylan specifically requested Rotolo’s name be changed inA Complete Unknownto respect her privacy. For this reason, these details about their relationship have been pulled from Suze Rotolo’s memoir.
Bob Dylan Also Started A Romance With Joan Baez After They Met In 1961
In addition to dating Suze Rotolo, Bob Dylan started an affair with folk musician Joan Baez, who received the public nickname “the barefoot Madonna.” Baez already had a successful career by the time she met Bob Dylan in 1961, and she helped boost his career by covering his music and bringing him onstage during her performances (viaFar Out Magazine).
A Complete Unknown Review: Timothée Chalamet Captivates As Bob Dylan In A Fascinating Yet Frustrating Biopic
I walked away from the film feeling distant from Bob Dylan. That seems to be by design but it’s no less frustrating from a storytelling point of view.
They soon developed a romantic relationship that lasted from around 1962 or 1963 until their messy breakup in 1965. As thetrailer forA Complete Unknownimplies, the Bob Dylan biopic shows the on-again, off-again affair that took place during his relationship with Sylvie Russo, aka Suze Rotolo. Throughout their romance, Dylan and Baez collaborated on music many times, both on and offstage. The pair famously performed at the March on Washington, where Martin Luther King Jr. would give his famous “I Have A Dream” speech.
However, Bob Dylan very suddenly broke up with Joan Baez in 1965 and married another woman named Sara Lownds (née Shirley Marlin Noznisky) shortly afterward. It took Baez over half a century to forgive him, and she likely wrote the songs “To Bobby,” “Diamonds and Ruse,” and “O Brother!” about Bob Dylan (viaAmerican Songwriter).
Bob Dylan Became A Staple Of Folk Music & The Newport Folk Festival In The 1960s
Bob Dylan’s Folk Songs Are Still Considered Iconic
Though the American Folk Revival was in full swing by the early 1960s, Bob Dylan became one of the biggest names in American folk music in 1963, the year he releasedThe Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. He’d spent his time between 1961 and 1963 building a small fanbase, and Joan Baez and Peter, Paul, and Mary boosted his visibility within the folk scene. By 1965, he’d gained a reputation for his beautifully written protest songs. His songs “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” and “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” became staples of the Civil Rights Movement.
In the decades since [the 1965 Newport Folk Festival], Dylan has dabbled in blues, rock, gospel, country, pop, and jazz.
Bob Dylan also performed at the 1963, 1964, and 1965 Newport Folk Festivals, all three of which appear inA Complete Unknown. He likely would have been invited to the 1961 and 1962 festivals based on his friendship with Pete Seeger, but the event wasn’t held those two years. Unfortunately, Bob Dylan didn’t return for the 1966 Newport Folk Festival, presumably because of the audience backlash from his 1965 performance with electric instruments – though that’s simply speculation. The irony in the backlash is the fact that other folk singers and groups, such as Howlin’ Wolf, played electric before Dylan at the 1965 festival without an outcry.
Bob Dylan’s 1965 Newport Folk Festival Performance Signaled His Move To Rock Music
Bob Dylan Shifted From Folk To Rock Before Exploring Other Genres
Though Bob Dylan made his name as a folk singer who wrote political songs, that is only a tiny fraction of his overall career, which has delved into multiple genres. The 1965 Newport Folk Festival was a pivotal moment for the singer as it marked his first genre shift. Dylan performed with electric instruments – a personal offense to folk genre purists. The audience had mixed reactions, with some booing him while others cheered him on. This performance pushed his music into the very new genre of folk rock, which combined elements of both genres.
A Complete Unknown Sound Team Details The Challenges Of Recreating Bob Dylan Songs & Recording Live Performances
The A Complete Unknown sound team reveals the challenges of recording live performances and details the collaboration with director James Mangold.
Bob Dylan became one of the biggest names in the genre, often being credited with creating folk-rock alongside the Byrds. However, he never stayed in one box for long. In the decades since then, Dylan has dabbled in blues, rock, gospel, country, pop, and jazz. His songs have revolutionized songwriting as a whole and inspired big-name artists like The Beatles and Bruce Springsteen.
Unfortunately, becauseA Complete Unknownends after the 1965 Newport Folk Festival, audience members won’t get to hear any songs outside of his folk and early folk-rock tracks. Plus, those that they hear will besung by Timothée Chalamet, who plays Bob Dylan. Luckily, curious viewers can search for his other music online, as it’s readily available on streaming sites.
