I'm Not There Review: An Interesting Take on an Interesting Icon

 

 

Director: Todd Haynes

 

UK Release Date: 21st December 2007

 

Running Time: 135 minutes

 

Starring: Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Richard Gere, Ben Whishaw, Marcus Carl Franklin

 

"I'm Not There" is a biographical drama based on the life of musician Bob Dylan.  However it is not your usual film of this sort.  Director Todd Haynes, portrays different aspects of Dylan's life by using 6 different characters.  This is where the film became very confusing as it is not really clear who is who and what throughout, with each story cutting just as it gets going for the next.  This is not just a view of ours - it is a view from Dylan himself when he was asked whether he liked the film in an interview with Rolling Stone. This does not take away from how good the film was though and it did seem to all come together by the end leaving us feeling satisfied from what we have just seen.  The film is accompanied by an incredible soundtrack with songs of Dylan's performed by him and others. 

Characters/Cast 

 

Cate Blanchett - Jude Quinn

 

Blanchett plays Jude Quinn to portray what happened in Dylan's life between 1965-1966.  This story shows Quinn playing an electric guitar while playing at a folk music festival and also touring around the United Kingdom without much success. This is a representation of Dylan's life as this is what happened to him. This character also accurately represents Dylan's personality and mannerisms and this is down to the performance of Cate Blanchett. She really shows what she can do in this film and rightfully deserved the plenty of award nominations she received for best supporting actress.

 

 

Christian Bale - Jack Rollins and Pastor John

 

Bale again shows his versatility by playing Jack Rollins and Pastor John (who is believed to be the older version of Rollins). Rollins character refers to Dylan's life just before the 'Jude Quinn' character portrayal period. It is a testament to his acoustic phase between 1963-1964. The Pastor John character refers to the re-incarnated Dylan in 1979.  Bale's performance was good - it felt like we did not get to see much of him which was a shame but what was shown was certainly not bad.

 

Heath Ledger - Robbie Clark

 

This is where it can get slightly confusing. Ledger plays Robbie Clark who is an actor. Simple enough but... Clark plays Jack Rollins in a biopic he is making. This part depicts a film within a film.  It is very clever once you get your head around it.  This character is used to show the personal life on Dylan - how his marriages came to be and subsequently broke up. Ledger gives a very powerful performance which was completed only two months before his tragic passing.  His performance as Clark truly shows how good he was. 

 

 
Richard Gere - Billy the Kid
 

Richard Gere plays a character referred to as Billy the Kid.  Gere's character is meant to show Dylan's life from the perspective of Dylan.  It shows the side of Dylan that did not want or desire the attention of the media and press.  The time period for this would be in the early 1970s.  Gere's performance is also good and the story that was portrayed was one of our more favoured ones.

 
Ben Whishaw - Arthur Rimbaud
 

This is a very interesting depiction of Dylan and can be seen as the most 'true'.  This is because Whishaw plays Arthur Rimbaud who throughout the film is answering questions from an interviewer.  All of Rimbaud's remarks and answers are real quotes that Dylan has made in his lifetime.  Again though, due to the amount of stories being told this one was
shown for a short amount of time and it would have been good to see more.
 

Marcus Carl Franklin - Woody Guthrie

 

Named after the childhood hero of Dylan, Woody Guthrie was played by Marcus Carl Franklin. This character also represents Dylan growing up and trying to understand himself and find his own identity as a person and as an artist. Franklin plays the role very well and was a pleasure to watch.
 

 
 

The film is very good although can be hard to follow.  We are Dylan fans and still struggled at times to follow what was being portrayed.  For any die hard fans this film would be incredible to watch.  However, that is not to say that people who are not fans should not watch it.  It is a great biographical film and is filmed in a different refreshing way to others and the soundtrack makes it all the more pleasant to watch.

 

M+F Rating: 7/10

 

 

Reviewed by M+F Reviews.

The Great Gatsby Review: How Great is Gatsby?

Director: Baz Luhrmann

 

UK Release Date: 16th May 2013

 

Running Time: 143 minutes

 

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, Tobey Maguire

The Great Gatsby sees Leonardo DiCaprio link up once again with director Baz Luhrmann as he did in Romeo + Juliet (1996). Joining DiCaprio in the cast are Carey Mulligan in what is the biggest film of her career so far, Joel Edgerton and Tobey Maguire.  The film is an adaptation of  Francis Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel of the same name.  The film follows character Nick Carraway (Maguire) as he tells the story of the mysterious Jay Gatsby (DiCaprio) set in 1920's America. 

The film was a big budget movie and there was a lot of hype surrounding its release in 2013 which was originally delayed.  However, it was well worth the wait and this film of epic proportions does not disappoint.  DiCaprio produces another magnificent performance to which we have all been accustomed to.  Although you have to wait a while before you fully get to witness him as Gatsby with the opening scenes only ever showing small glimpses.  Maguire works well as Carraway and fits the role as someone who is trying to fit into his surroundings of the roaring twenties.  The lead female role Daisy Buchanan who is played by Carey Mulligan asserts herself on the screen alongside the likes of well established actors such as DiCaprio and Maguire showing she too can be a star of Hollywood.  The cast fit their roles perfectly and work well together. 

The roaring twenties is a period known for big parties and flamboyancy in the United States. It was boom time for the country with Wall Street flourishing.  The film represents this in a great way and you can see where a lot of the budget was spent. No detail was left untouched from the set, scenes and outfits the characters were made to wear.  This really adds to the whole experience while watching the film and makes it very enjoyable to see one interpretation of what the roaring twenties were like.

Another interesting aspect of Luhrman's version of this story is the soundtrack that is used to accompany it.  The soundtrack was executively produced by none other than Jay Z and here at M+F Reviews we were very impressed.  The soundtrack compliments the film and the time period The Great Gatsby is set in.  With some new tracks on the album and some covers, the soundtrack would have been a hit by itself even if not associated with the film. The soundtrack includes work by Florence + The Machine, Jack White, Brian Ferry and Beyoncé.

If you like big movies then you will love the Great Gatsby.  Big parties, big music and a big cast make this Baz Luhrman film one of the greats.  It can be thoroughly enjoyed by anyone with many different aspects ranging from fashion and music to the awesome set design and impressive cast. The Great Gatsby is great and M+F Reviews encourages you to watch it if you have not already!

M+F Rating: 8/10

 

 

Reviewed by M+F Reviews.