I'm Not There

I'm Not There
Starring Cate Blancett, Ben Whishaw, Heath Ledger, Christian Bale, Richard Gere, Marcus Carl Franklin, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Michelle Williams, and Bruce Greenwood

If anything can push itself closer to a masterpiece than what "I'm Not There" does, it's trying too hard. Through the eyes of director and writer Todd Haynes, we are given a collage of Bob Dylan, though he's never there (pun). With five, six or seven different interpretations of Dylan's life through five and up to seven fictionally true life characters, a near masterpiece - and the most original movie I have seen in years - forms.

There is Woody Guthrie, the lone wanderer, played masterfully by the young Marcus Carl Franklin. The casting is perfect for Woody, a version of Dylan. He is naive, adventurous, and running from or to something. Franklin's youth carries the character from place to place. Then we have Heath Ledger's Robbie Clark. This Dylan is washed-up and very persuasive in character. Love to anguish, Clark falls for Charlotte Gainsbourg's artsy Claire, and in the midst of the 60s, we see the evolution of couple. Probably my least favorite Dylan, Christian Bale is the epitome of folk music. He lives it. He is it. But Bale's character, Jack Rollins has the easy road compared to the other Dylans. (Bale also plays Pastor John, which may be the sixth Dylan). The final two definite Dylans are the most spectacular. Ben Whishaw's Arthur Rimbaud, outlaw, jailed up, delivers a picturesque interview monologues that trail throughout the film.

And finally, Cate. Cate Blanchett, in her most terrifically jaw-dropping role, is "I'm Not There." Her Dylan named Jude Quinn is the rock of Haynes film, and he knows it. She embodies Dylan more than any of the men playing him. She is the chameleon. She is perfect. She is, and I say this with all my knowledge of Hollywood, the best actress of our generation. Hand her the effing Oscar now.

Oh, yes - what about that seventh Dylan? Well, Richard Gere has a fun role near the end of the movie, playing Billy the Kid. Though he does cross paths with Franklin's Woody-Dylan, one may list Billy the Kid as a mirrored Dylan. I do. His scenes are bizarre and imaginative, giving us an alter-reality and something to ponder.

Todd Haynes delivered one of the best films of 2007, and one that really needs to be watched 50 times to grasp everything. I honestly can't wait to see it again.

Grade: A