Review of I'm Not There (2007) by Jasminka G — 17 Aug 2009

There are a lot of biopics featuring musicians coming out lately and to be perfectly honest, the story is pretty much the same in all of them. Poor kid loves music. Kid gets older and gets famous. Fame brings money, drugs, and women.

Money, drugs and women bring the loss of family, friends, sanity, and eventually the loss of the money, drugs and women. Being poor brings god, which leads to some sanity again. Kid who is now an old man rediscovers music.

Because of the somewhat tired and predictable lives of musicians (apparently) the thing that is going to separate one movie from next is not so much the story itself, but how it's being told and "I'm Not There" is heads and tails above the rest in that department.

In the film Bob Dylan is portrayed by a number of different actors from Richard Gere to Christian Bale, to Heath Ledger and even Cate Blanchett. Every one of them gives a solid performance. Director Todd Haynes presents the story of Dylan's life in a unique, original, and totally engaging way that'll keep you wondering what's coming around the corner.

To top it all off, I guess it goes without saying that music wonderful. In the rash of musician biopics that have come out lately "I'm Not There" is the best of the bunch, and it's more than worth a spot in your queue.

Lord knows there is no way that it could have been any worse than Jamie Foxx's "Ray.".