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salonva

A Complete Unknown

last year

I typically go to the movies once a year, maybe twice in a very busy year. I don't watch movies at home either. It's just not my thing.

However, I always liked Bob Dylan a LOT so decided to go see A Complete Unknown. I went last week ( 11 am showtime how perfect is that?!) and boy did I enjoy it.

I was so impressed with the singing in this movie, in particular the Joan Baez ( Monica Barbaro) character was amazing. I know Timothee Chalomet is the rage but he really was impressive, singing and playing guitar and harmonica.

I didn't know going in, but the film really focused on a 5 or 10 year period and it was very well done. I did hear there wre inaccuracies some intentional and some not, but overall I think it was really good and I felt like I had been at a concert.

Highly recommended.


Comments (41)

  • last year

    Saw it during the holidays. Also thought it was excellent

    salonva thanked bothell
  • last year
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    Thanks, salonva. I just heard about the movie for the first time this morning on the news. I like the title choice.

    ETA - This small bit from the Golden Globes was what was on the news.

    https://www.instagram.com/entertainmenttonight/reel/DEdzY28y_K8/

    salonva thanked chloebud
  • last year
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    I am exactly like you about movies. I never go and seldom watch at home, but I saw Timothée being interviewed about this and they showed some clips that made me think I might want to see it (I love him). I have a friend who LOVES movies and he's dragged me to a few over the years so we have a date to see it tomorrow afternoon, which should be a low count audience time. Glad to hear you liked it. I'm looking forward to it.

    salonva thanked Olychick
  • last year

    I also rarely go to the movies but I too have a date with my sister and niece tomorrow afternoon to see this. I grew up with that music and I am looking forward to it.

    salonva thanked gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
  • last year

    I'm glad it was worth your effort and you enjoyed yourself. I like to go occasionally and DH does not - so we rarely do. I can't even remember the last time I watched an entire movie on TV. BBC was running Captain Phillips (Tom Hanks) the other night when I went to bed and I fell asleep, even when I'd been interested.

    Although I'm sure I'd stay awake in a theater.

    The back to back Lifetime movies we would see when visiting my mother I don't think count. They were all the same movie with different actors. Nice girl meets nice boy, they are attracted to each other and by movies end are together 😁 I do have to give DH credit for tolerating, not complaining, MANY of those.

    salonva thanked morz8 - Washington Coast
  • last year

    We saw it last Thursday and we loved it. Dylan took a very active part in the movie production. He suggested things that did not actually happen, like meeting Seeger at Woody's hospital, He actually sat down and did a table-read of the dialogue. The movie focuses on 1961, when he arrived in NYC and the 1965 Newport Folk Festival.

    Ed Norton is fantastic. Altho the actress who played Baez was very good and she sang well, it just didn't capture Baez the way the other actors got their characters' singing.

    But we thought it was fantastic, Go!

    salonva thanked sushipup2
  • last year

    I rarely go to the movies anymore but this one is on my list to see. Now if I can round up someone to go with. That's my era!

    salonva thanked lily316
  • last year

    I haven't seen a movie in years at a theatre but I would love to see this one. Thanks for the review

    salonva thanked Cherryfizz
  • last year

    I'm glad you posted this. I was kind of thinking I'd avoid it based on all the marketing put out. For some reason Mr. Chalomet's selling of it put me off a bit.

    salonva thanked daisychain011
  • last year

    We have Regal Unlimited, so we try to go see different types of movies. We loved Complete Unknown! Thought it was fantastic and left singing and feeling somewhat young~

    The next movie we saw was Wicked, I loved it and one of us slept through it. I think it is definitely one to see.

    salonva thanked frankginakay
  • last year

    Lily316-- a long time ago someone suggested going to the movies alone made sense and when you think about it, it's not like you 're going to chat during the movie so why not?

    DH is less of a movie person than I am so I can't remember the last time he went with me to amovie theatre. I know for sure it was before we moved 6 years ago.

    As I said, I rarely rarely do go to the movies, but I go daytime ( and usually the earliest showing. Like I said, 11 am is perfect for me). It's usually people like me and totally comfortable.


    To add to my push to go alone; I saw the time slot that worked for me and I typcially do this last minute. I did text some friends saying I am going to the 11 am showing, and am in seat 123. if you 'd like to join. It did not work for them but I was determined that I was going and didn't want to get caught up other stuff.


    Back to the movie, I'm glad you all enjoyed and or are plannng to.

    ( and yes, I had and have the same reaction to TC and hype. He might be really all that, but I can't get past the hype OR his "date".

  • last year

    I like Timothee C and I have a longtime crush on Edward, but I (don’t throw anything at me) can’t stand Bob Dylan. But DH is a fan and rarely wants to go to the movies, so might be worth going because he would be into it.


    I saw Wicked with a friend last week at an 11:00 show! I agree it’s a great time for a movie because I do tend to fall asleep.


    We also saw A Real Pain and really liked it. I think you need to like the quirkiness of the main actors, though (I do).

    salonva thanked Sueb20
  • last year

    We saw it yesterday and thought it was fantastic! We were so impressed with Timothee as Dylan. Very, very enjoyable!

    salonva thanked LynnNM
  • last year

    I went on December 25. Every showing was sold out. I really enjoyed it and was surprised that I remembered the lyrics to almost every song. (Told my big brother it was from sneak-listening to his records when he wasn't home.) I was also relieved that the movie only covered Dylan's early years, and ended before his accident, which I really didn't want to see. The audience applauded and I walked home singing the songs, kind of like one does when they see a good musical.

    salonva thanked Jupidupi
  • last year

    “Ed Norton is fantastic.”

    Gifted actor, for sure! I think the first time I saw him was in Primal Fear…WOW!!!

    salonva thanked chloebud
  • last year

    I don't tend to like dramatizations "based on....". Maybe because I like to read biographies and non-fiction accounts of people and events.

    Anyone interested in Dylan would enjoy his autobiographic Chronicles: Volume One. It's rated #1 on Rolling Stone's list of 50 Greatest Rock Memoirs of All Time.

    salonva thanked Elmer J Fudd
  • last year

    lI am so not into movies that I don't know the names of the actors you are mentioning. I thought Ed Norton was a familiar name, but again, I don't think I've ever seen him in anything before this. I had to confirm so he played Pete Seeger.


    I did have to look up who played Joan Baez, more for the voice which was just beautiful.


    Elmer, they did say it had inaccuracies sprinkled thoughout and I thought I had read that some of that was at Bob Dylan's direction. I really went more out of curiosity and consider it a win when I'm entertained which I was.

    One criticism I had was that in "capturing" him and his speech, I thought they might have gone a bit excessive with the slurring and soft spokenness -


    I will look for that book you mentioned (at a glance, none of the libraries I use have it on kindle. will see about regular book)

    I did reserve (and should get quickly) A Freewheelin' Time by Suze Rotolo.


  • last year

    A little OT, Peter Yarrow died.

    salonva thanked faftris
  • last year

    The movie is based on the book "Dylan Goes Electric" by Elijah Wald.

    https://www.amazon.com/Dylan-Goes-Electric-Newport-Sixties/dp/0062366688

    salonva thanked sushipup2
  • last year
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    Hmm. The Newport performance in 1965 triggered a wide variety of reactions, many of them contradicted and discounted by others. Al Kooper, a giant in the music world whose contributions have not always been adequately recognized (though he was just inducted into the Rock Hall of Fame), was in the band playing with Dylan that night and relates his own story about what happened.

    The so-called revolt or watershed event that some want to mark because of Dylan playing an electric guitar and with a band of accomplished musicians was (according to Kooper) only one of the many bobbing and weaving change actions Dylan has done periodically during his entire career. The audience screamed and booed loudly as they left the stage because, according to Kooper, they'd cut the set short prematurely and walked off after just a few songs. The audience wanted to hear more. Why Dylan stopped, he was unsure. That the booing was attributable to dissatisfaction with the instrumentation, he disagrees.

    Kooper, by the way, as a teenager trying to get into the music scene in NY, wandered via an unauthorized way into the recording studio, sat himself at a Wurlitzer organ (that he'd never played before) and began to play during the recording of "Like A Rolling Stone". He didn't know the song, hadn't rehearsed with the band, but thought it might be fun. He relates that if you listen closely, you can hear that oftentimes in the song his organ part lags (isn't playing at the top of the measure when there are chord changes) because he waited to hear what the others were playing. He made up his part on the fly, not knowing either the song or the instrument. He describes himself at the time as lacking common sense while being 10% talent, 90% cojones. After hearing the new organ part he hadn't heard before, Dylan told the sound engineer to raise the volume of the organ in the mix and he hired Kooper to play with his band for the forthcoming tour.

    Dylan is one of a few musicians, Chuck Berry being another, who has played with nearly everyone and in many styles at one time or another. Both are very unpicky about who they have in the backing band and are happy to work with new people with new styles. I heard a tale about Berry that he was known for "touring" with a guitar under his arm and otherwise, on his own without a band. His requests for each venue were only about what kind of amp he wanted to be provided and what musicians needed to be provided playing what instruments. As for instructions for local musicians to be hired, the message would be sent "be ready to play any of his songs" and that was it.

    salonva thanked Elmer J Fudd
  • last year

    Yarrow was a special talent. I loved PP&M and other things the members did separately.

    salonva thanked Elmer J Fudd
  • last year

    Not a fan. My friend, who I drove cross-country with, is. She also loves Janis Joplin. It was hard making a playlist of music for that trip. I skipped a lot of songs for her because she hated some of my picks, as much as I did hers'. By the end of the trip I was playing Joan Baez because she can't stand her, especially the song about him. lol.

    salonva thanked Kathsgrdn
  • last year

    Re: not knowing much about actors, specifically Ed Norton, all I can think of when I hear his name is the neighbor on the old ”Honeymooners” TV show!

    salonva thanked Olychick
  • last year

    Salonva, I know what you mean by not knowing actors. I just recently found out that Blake Lively is a woman. And Channing Tatum? I was surprised to find out that's a man's name.

    salonva thanked Jupidupi
  • last year

    Thanks, Chloe for posting that. That was some good rock and roll and the performers...WOW! I wonder what year this was.

    salonva thanked lily316
  • last year

    Lily, I checked…October ’92. Quite a group!

    salonva thanked chloebud
  • last year

    chloe, there's so much to like in that video. I first saw it many years back. From Dylan's 30th Anniversary concert, 1992.

    The My Back Pages performed as arranged and recorded by the Byrds with Roger McGuinn starting off and playing his jangly Rick 12 string throughout, Clapton's solo and Young's too at the end, Neil Young's verse, Tom Petty's. GE Smith (a very underappreciated musician) as apparently musical director, cuing Young to take a solo.

    I have the album of the concert, many other guest performers on other songs.

    salonva thanked Elmer J Fudd
  • last year
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    Elmer, a lot to like for sure with Dylan, McGuinn, Clapton, Young, Petty and Harrison. I had to check…George died in 2001 and Petty in 2017. It’s the only part of the concert I’ve seen. Will have to check for more.

    Is GE Smith the blonde guy in the gray suit?

    salonva thanked chloebud
  • last year
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    Yes, suit jacket and slacks with a dark T-shirt underneath. He's a very accomplished and respected musical director/guitarist. He toured with Dylan , was the band leader on Saturday Night Live for a long time, guitarist and musical director for Hall & Oates for a number of years, among other things. He's a guy kind of like Paul Shaffer - has a low profile but when you pay attention, he pops up here, there and everywhere.

    Many of the songs in the concert were played in a blues-y style, which appeal to some and not to others. I like it, the musicians involved are top tier.

    salonva thanked Elmer J Fudd
  • last year

    Judi and Oly-- I too only thought of the Honeymooners re Ed Norton but I did know there was /is an actor with that name. Re Blake and Channing- I hear the names but zero clue!!!


    Wow that performance is magical Chloe and I think that is GE Smith.


    I'm remembering that I saw Bob Dylan in concert at MSG I think in 1974 (ish). You had to send in request for tickets and it was a lottery. I did "win" meaning I could buy 2 tickets.

    Then about 40 years later, maybe exactly? DD 2 got us tickets to see him. It was knd of a struggle to listen to him. He did not sound great, and he also played mostly new or unfamiliar stuff.

  • last year

    I liked “A Complete Unknown” a lot.


    If you can, watch “Rolling Thunder Revue” by Martin Scorsese. It is about the 1975-76 Dylan tour, sort of half documentary, half fantasy.

    salonva thanked John Liu
  • last year

    Gee, you must have really wondered about me when I said I had a crush on Edward Norton!


    This one.



    Not this one.



    salonva thanked Sueb20
  • last year

    The glowing recommendations were well deserved!! I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. The musical performances of the actors involved were truly remarkable.

    I'd see it again.

    salonva thanked gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
  • last year
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    33 years ago! They were so young as we all were.

    salonva thanked lily316
  • last year

    Well, our plan to see the movie midday, midweek in order to avoid a crowded theatre, seems was the same plan as every other gray haired retiree. My friend checked online to buy tix before we left home and it was almost sold out! Too crowded for us, so we postponed until next week, hoping the crowds will thin. I told him maybe we should go in the evening when all the old people are in bed, lol.

    salonva thanked Olychick
  • last year

    Two points to add

    I know GE Smith from SNL but more so as being briefly married to Gilda Radner.


    Oly, when I went, there were maybe 10 or 12 people in a theatre that could seat 50 or 60. The seats are stadium style so I forget that it desn't matter if someone is in front of you. Also they are so large that even next to you is probably 3 feet away. I go daytime because after 3pm I'd probably fall asleep in the comfy chairs AND any time before 4 is half price for seniors.

    :) seriously though just like with reading , I'm at my focused best in the earlier part of the day.

  • last year

    I know I am probably alone on this, but hearing Bob Dylan makes me shudder. I

    always used to call him "Old Mush Mouth". I know that's not nice (lots of friends

    liked him)...but my honesty. However, I always heard he was a very nice

    boy/man. So enjoy the movie.

    salonva thanked Uptown Gal
  • last year

    I finally made it to A Complete Unknown yesterday. I LOVED this movie so much! I went with a friend who is a lifetime long musician, which was really great for me to debrief with after the film. He knew the history of Dylan's transition from folk to more rock/electric and the outrage at the Newport Music Festival about it. I have no memory that I ever knew any of that (or that I would have cared). He also mentioned all of the guitars in the film, that they are the real deal and what Dylan still plays.

    I'm neutral about Dylan. He was such a part of the cultural landscape of my youth that I am very familiar with and love some of his music, though I was not really a 'fan'. I consider me a fan of artists if I've purchased their music and/or attended their concerts. I neither loved nor hated him, but realized during the film that I loved lots of the familiar songs.

    I wasn't really all that familiar with Pete Seeger or Woody Guthrie, but became a huge fan of Arlo Guthrie after Alice's restaurant was released, so I found the portrayal of his father interesting. I loved Judy Collins and remember at a concert a couple of years ago she spoke of being summoned to Pete Seeger's bedside as he was dying and singing to him as he transitioned to the next realm. I loved that story and that's mostly what I know/remember of Pete Seeger, but loved the portrayal of him in the film. I also loved the connection between the three of them, Seeger, Guthrie and Dylan.

    I loved all of the sets, all of the old cars, the music venues, etc. And Timothèe Chalomet was exquisite in this film! All of the acting was splendid. I never was a fan of Joan Baez during those years, tho her music was familiar to me. Again, I didn't love or hate her, but I never was a 'fan.' But maybe 30 years ago, I went to a concert in Seattle, held on a pier (a very popular summer venue) and she sang with the sun setting behind her, a full moon rising in its place, with the water sparkling all around and I fell in love with her and her voice. Her more mature voice. Her son sat in the seats ahead of us (festival seating but those seats were taped off until he arrived) and she came out to say Hi to him, which was a thrill. Anyway, I've seen her several times since then, so it was interesting to see the portrayal of the earlier years.

    Highly recommend this movie!

  • last year

    Watched it last week and really enjoyed it.

    FWIW, Dylan may not have the best voice, but he wrote so many fabulous songs - more than I can count. Hearing them again in a new way was a delight. Mocking his style has become a cultural trope played for laughs.

    And there have been a number of articles pointing out the discrepancies between the events portrayed in the film and the real life occurrences. For instance, Dylan's meeting Guthrie did not happen until a couple weeks after he arrived in NY, and not @ the hospital, Baez wasn't in Greenwich Village during the missile crisis, and there was no riot at the Newport festival, just booing. The filmmaker has made it clear this was not to be a biopic, so there was quite a bit of artistic license involved.

    I learned that Chalomet studied for this role since 2019 - I believe the pandemic put the production on hold. Norton absolutely nailed Seeger's voice and manner, IMO. I read the role was originally going to Benedict Cumberpatch, but he had to bow out.

    My mom was big folk music fan, lived the Village in the 50s, and had Dylan and Baez records(among many others) we all grew up enjoying.

  • last year
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    As far as the Newport Folk Festival goes, my understanding is that the booing was actually because Dylan was the headliner and closing act and many people had been there for three days excitied and waiting to hear him, but he and his band only played for 15 minutes. Huge disappointment. The media picked up the story and made it about the electric instruments. The Byrds were using electric instruments about the same time and blending it with their folk style-no one objected. I am old enough to be his slightly younger sister, so I do remember this time. I do think Pete was disappointed and their friendship suffered, but they became friends again years later.