How can you make a movie about a man who does not have one definition?  How can you capture the humanity of an artist who has changed personas endlessly? These are the questions that Todd Haynes tries to answer within his newest film I'm Not There.  The film follows the story of Bob Dylan's relationships, music, and fame without ever mentioning his name or showing his face.  Just as the title of the film suggests, Bob Dylan is not there.  It is hard to believe that one of the greatest American myths is a real man, so Haynes breaks him up between six very different actors.  The film follows the intertwined story lines of Woody Guthrie (the young traveler), Jack Rollins (the folk prodigy), Robbie Clark (the movie star), Jude Quinn (the electric icon), Arthur Rimbaud (the media prisoner), and Billy the Kid (the reclusive legend).  Each segment comes together to show the legend, the myth, the truth, and the life of Bob Dylan.

The six characters show aspects of Dylan's life that are well known and loved, and others that are private and flawed.  From the beginning of the film, we become acquainted with each and then hop the train with little Woody Guthrie.  Harking back to Dylan's musical idols, Marcus Carl Franklin plays a Dylan who is trying to make a name for himself (and constantly trying to find a place to stay for the night).  Because Franklin is so young, he represents the naļve nature of a budding musician. Christian Bale comes into the film to fulfill the big shoes of Dylan as the Greenwich poet, Jack Rollins.  Bale connects with the audience as the voice of a generation, through "No Direction Home" style documentary footage of performances.  Within a white room, sitting at a table, Ben Whishaw played the constant interviewed Arthur Rimbaud.  Quick snippets and authentic Dylan lines from Arthur keeps the audience in a stark realization that Bob Dylan was always answering to people in his own style.

Once the foundation of Dylan's acoustic past is laid down, Cate Blanchett comes to "turn up the amp" of the film.  Her brilliant portrayal of Jude Quinn, the newly turned electric rock star Dylan, keeps the audience wondering if that is actually Bob Dylan on the screen.  The pinnacle point of the film is when Jude and his band get up on the stage of the Newport Folk Festival.  To reinforce the feeling of betrayal Haynes brought biting imagery to the screen by having Jude and company open their instrument cases to reveal machine guns and proceeded to gun down the entire audience. From having an affair with an Edie Sedgwick inspired character (Coco Rivington) and getting the Beatles high, to a scornful rendition of "Ballad of a Thin Man" directed at a probing journalist, Blanchett is the Dylan that shocked the folk community and jumped into Chelsea boots and Ray ban wayfarer sunglasses. 

Unlike the first four Dylan personas within the film, Heath Ledger and Richard Gere take the road less traveled by showing more private sides of Bob.  Ledger portrays the womanizing and unfaithful movie star, Robbie Clark.  He shows the dark and lasting affects of fame and power on Bob Dylan.  Ledger plays the part so well, that it is easy to hate him.  Robbie Clarks failing marriage to Clare (played by Charlotte Gainsbourg) parallels all of the relationships within Dylan's life.  Towards the end of the film, the audience becomes acquainted with Billy the Kid, the Dylan in hiding.  Richard Gere tries to capture Dylan as a quiet observer, but misses the mark.  It is hard to make the mental leap with Gere, and the imaginary town of Billy the Kid's mind.

I'm Not There is an ambitious film that makes you want to learn more about Bob Dylan: his life, and his music.  At the end of the film, Haynes wants the viewer to make their own opinion of Bob Dylan as a human by appreciating his genius and exposing his flaws.  With a stellar soundtrack filled with Dylan covers by indie rock artists, every aspect of this film is a reinvention; just the way that Bob would have wanted it.