• The narrative storytelling is fascinating—a collage, kaleidoscope—impressionistic biopic that avoids the dry conventional biopic like the plague (sort of the anti-Ray or Walk the Line)
  • Haynes sets it up early with a montage of his lead actors playing versions of the Bob Dylan character—you have an old one (Richard Gere), Woman (Cate Blanchett), etc—calls them the “poet”, “ghost”, “fake”,”outlaw”, etc
  • Voice-over by Dylan friend (co-star on Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid) Kris Kristofferson
  • Lots of BW 16mm
  • The film struggles in sections and fascinates in others— it’s buoyed by that dream cast (which you could argue is largely spoiled) and the wall to wall brilliant music (by Dylan of course)—the cast includes Blanchett (who steals the show), Gere, Bale, Ledger, Michelle Williams and Juliane Moore- some of the best actors of the era—Moore specifically- a frequent collaborator and semi-muse of Haynes is given almost nothing to do here—she does the faux documentary sequences—Haynes did this as one of his three min-films in debut Poison (1991)
  • Blanchett’s gender-bending (keeping with Haynes as a feminist artist, a figure of Queer cinema) performance is awesome- it goes beyond just gimmick—she’s electric—angered
  • Michelle Williams as Edie Sedgwick is inspired casting- she’s not in much here- wish she had been cast in the Edie biopic Factory Girl (2006) with Sienna Miller
  • The film is long- very contrary, antagonist and speaks in riddles- much like Dylan
  • The “going to Acapulco” song/scene is inspired- not only the performance by Calexico but the staging and mise-en-scene from Haynes
  • Recommend- not in the top 10 of the 2007