Why I Think I'M NOT THERE Is One Of The Best Films Of Our Time...

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 2/20/08 at 4:15am

It's been a few months since I've seen this film and I'm absolutely and completely convinced that this is one of the greatest films of our time. By fragmenting and distancing the artist at the center from the audience as a whole, Todd Haynes is able to burrow deeper into his psyche than movies like RAY or WALK THE LINE do. The problem with this movie is that it assumes the audience has some understanding of Bob Dylan's life and times because it uses it as a canvas with which to paint its crazy-cool mixture of wonderment.

But basically...

1) A young man arrives into this world wanting to forget his past. He uses the one talent he has (music) to spin fantastic tall tales about wonderful things that never happened. All throughout this time, he is closely hewing his life to that of an artistic idol. Once he dies, so does he.

2) His spirit leaves that body and becomes a protest singer, a troubadour of our times. He grows sick of this persona and the demands that it places on him and deliberately seeks out to sabotage it in a confused and drunken haze. This is where he becomes...

3) A gender-anonymous fop who publicly trades in acoustic sounds for electric ones, which destroys him completely in the eyes of those who claim to love him. He is hiding from a persona he created to get away from a persona from a persona from a persona to the point that he doesn't know Who He Is Anymore.

4) His family life crumbles as he questions what love is and what it entails.

5) Once a pivotal tragedy in his life occurs, he goes into hiding and retreats into the realm of his imagination: An apocalyptic Americana that never was, represented here by a surreal Wild West town that is shot like McCabe and Mrs. Miller.

Each of the segments is done in a different cinematic style, which I, as a film geek, certainly enjoyed. This shot came from this Godard film. That zoom was straight out of an Altman film. Regardless of whether or not you like or even care about Bob Dylan, if you are a film geek, you should see this film simply for that reason.

It gets even deeper and deeper into the mythology and the life of Dylan himself. Shots are deliberately composed to look like album covers and lyrics from obscure songs spring to life visually. This is one of the densest films you could possibly see.

As you fit the pieces into the jigsaw, you will find that the picture that emerges is a portrait of a man who has spent his life trying to escape: His past, his family, his fans, his music, his identity. He will do anything necessary to move through this life unshackled to anything, even if it means destroying his family or alienating his fans. Haynes doesn't judge or lionize this person but encourages you to come up with your own interpretations.

I love this film more and more with each passing day. It got a little lost in the Oscar shuffle and it was royally screwed by its distributors. If you ever get the chance to see it, though, do not hesitate because this is one of the most rewarding cinematic experiences you will have.

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 2/20/08 at 4:15am

And I'm not just saying that because Heath Ledger died.

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 1:27am

Meh meh.

[cubanpab]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 10:39am

i saw it a few weeks ago, was really excited to see it, and i have to say that sadly i wasnt able to get all the way thru it... i just found it to be so so so bizarre... i guess its not a film for everyone. i personally didnt enjoy it.

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 10:55am

Neither did I, pab. I knew a little about Dylan, but wanted to know more. The fragmenting of the cast and story didn't work. What a disappointment.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 11:25am

Some say it's a masterpiece, some say it's a train wreck. I'm not sure where I stand - probably somewhere in the the middle. I will see it again when it's out on DVD. I refuse to go back to the hideous Film Forum.

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 11:51am

Wait, Heath Ledger is DEAD?

[broadway86]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 11:57am

No.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 5:35pm

I just don't think the movie was aesthetic. If you just want a lecture on what makes someone who they are, this is the wrong medium for it. I agree that you can make a film that explores what film can be and how narratives are structured, but exploration doesn't equal success. I'm Not There was a mess. A well-intentioned mess.

That said, Cate Blanchett is a god.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 5:49pm

It's film-school good. Great for analysis and deconstruction. Bad for everyone else.

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 5:55pm

To me, this film is like a lot of conceptual art shows that I hate. Art snobs stand around a pile of soil on the floor of a gallery, and pretend that they are staring at something deep. They'll actually discuss it in artistic terms, because they feel they should.

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 5:59pm

But it hugs well!

[cubanpab]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 7:00pm

jane2... thats exactly how i felt... i'm not saying the pile of soil isnt deep to them... but i just dont get it.

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 7:13pm

Well, I think we don't get it because there's nothing to get. It's pretentious. That's how I feel about it.

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 9:02pm

How many damn threads have you posted on this movie, Cruel?


Maybe you're going nowhere with your filmmaking because you prefer to geek out on movies than actually make them.

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 9:17pm

Why do people keep saying it is Bob Dylan, but none of the characters are named Bob Dylan?
I have not seen it, so I was just curious.

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 9:25pm

It's part of the pretense. And none of them remind you of Dylan either. Except for Blanchett, she got his voice down pat.

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 11:01pm

But if they are not REALLY playing Dylan, why is it necessary to know about his life?

And for Cruel to say that the flaw of the film is that you should know about his life, I would say that is a pretty big flaw and should eliminate it from any short list of one of the "Best Films Of Our Time."

[tazber]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 11:07pm

I was wondering the same thing Sueleen was. So, it's about a fictional singer who is supposed to be Bob Dylan?

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/21/08 at 11:20pm

I can't even go so far as to say it's about anyone in particular.

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 2/22/08 at 12:10am

Heath Ledger thought that people don't have to know about Dylan going in. "Just strap yourself in for the ride," he said.

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 2/22/08 at 12:12am

I'll bet Heath used that line a lot.

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 2/22/08 at 12:23am

The entire film hugs really really well.

[lildogs]

Posted: 2/22/08 at 4:16pm

Did you have a bad experience at Film Forum, munk?

The only things I've seen there are "TREMBLING BEFORE G-D" and "SEVEN YEAR ITCH"--quite a combo, huh?

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 2/22/08 at 11:27pm

I din't remember who, but I trembled before them and got an itch that won't go away.