I'm Not There

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I'm Not There ★★★ 2007 (R)

Sort of a symbolist musical history pic loaded with real-life clips and acted by no less than six separate actors and actresses representing different identities of poet/musician/revolutionary Bob Dylan. There's 11-year-old Woody (Franklin) who hops trains and tells far-fetched stories; Jack Rollins (Bale) personifies Dylan's first look at fame in folk-song roots; Jude (Blanchett) represents Dylan's shift to electric rock, a divisive move that alienated many of his fans. Richard Gere shows up as Billy, a personification of Dylan exiled in Missouri. Arthur (Whishaw), yet another Dylan, narrates and brings the sequences somewhat into focus. It's long and rambling and dreamlike, but Dylan fans will delight at the many references that their less-obsessed friends will miss. 135m/C DVD . GE US Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Cate Blanchett, Ben Whishaw, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Julianne Moore, Michelle Williams, David Cross, Bruce Greenwood, Lisa Bronwyn Moore; D: Todd Haynes; W: Todd Haynes, Oren Moverman; C: Edward Lachman. Golden Globes ‘08: Support. Actress (Blanchett); Ind. Spirit ‘08: Support. Actress (Blanchett).