‘A Complete Unknown’ Explores the Elusive Genius of Bob Dylan

James Mangold’s new biopic, A Complete Unknown, delves into the complexities of Bob Dylan, exploring the enigma behind his voice and artistic journey. In a particularly striking moment, Dylan, portrayed by Timothée Chalamet, bitterly comments that when people ask him where his songs come from, they’re really asking why the songs didn’t come to them. This sentiment encapsulates the essence of Dylan’s mystique—he’s a figure who has shaped American culture and sparked intense admiration, yet remains an elusive, mysterious character. Though countless biographies, scholarly books, and films have attempted to explain him, the true Bob Dylan is still a riddle, and this film, in its pursuit, offers no easy answers.

Dylan’s rise from a scruffy 20-year-old Midwestern hitchhiker to the world’s most influential musician is woven into mythology—some crafted by Dylan himself, others by his admirers. Still, the core truth behind his emergence in New York’s Greenwich Village folk scene in the early 1960s remains captivating. A young man arriving in the city, meeting his idol, Woody Guthrie, and rapidly surpassing Guthrie’s populist bard persona, leaves us wondering how someone so ordinary could become so extraordinary. The real question that A Complete Unknown grapples with is not how this happened, but why it didn’t happen to any of us. Dylan’s rise remains one of the great artistic mysteries of our time.

Even now, Dylan likely understands that people are not only interested in his story, but in the idea of his success and its elusiveness. He has tried to explain this phenomenon in his 2004 memoir, Chronicles Volume 1, and in the 2005 documentary No Direction Home, but his words seem to point us toward questions that are, in truth, ours to ask—not his to answer.

“A Complete Unknown” captures this paradox, portraying Dylan as a man who is both the subject of his own story and the object of ours, fully aware of this dynamic. Chalamet’s portrayal brings this awareness to life through a careful combination of detachment, calculation, and suspicion. These traits, which pervade Dylan’s personal interactions and performances, are strikingly present in Chalamet’s performance. The actor not only studied archival footage of Dylan but internalized his essence, perfectly embodying the musician’s guarded, deliberate nature.

Even early in the film, Dylan is portrayed as someone with an almost sociopathic quality—calculating and performative in his interactions with others. He was always aware of his talent and his destiny, and that awareness translated into a singular, unwavering pursuit of his artistic goals. This portrayal resonates with the accounts of Dylan’s own self-perception, particularly his belief that he was destined for greatness, something different from the ordinary trajectory of his peers.

What truly set Dylan apart from other ambitious youth was his exceptional talent, coupled with an unyielding work ethic. Without his extraordinary songwriting, his rise would not have been possible. A Complete Unknown, while exploring the mystery of his creativity, offers us a front-row seat to one of the most remarkable periods of artistic growth in history. While the mystery of creative genius can never fully be understood, this film provides a glimpse into the intense and transformative moment of Dylan’s emergence.

The challenge of portraying Dylan’s music is significant—his songs are so iconic that they’ve become part of the cultural fabric for many older generations, while for younger audiences, they may seem distant or forgotten. A Complete Unknown successfully overcomes this obstacle by reintroducing us to the thrill of discovery. Each time we hear Bob perform his early songs, such as “Song to Woody,” “Blowin’ in the Wind,” and “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” the film captures the raw power of those moments, making us feel as if we are hearing them for the first time. Chalamet’s portrayal is central to this, delivering these performances with a sense of wonder and awe that helps us relive the revolutionary impact these songs had in their time.

Through these iconic moments, we understand why people close to Dylan supported him, despite his often manipulative and cruel behavior. We also see how his ambition and success fueled a cycle of artistic evolution—his urge to continually challenge his audience, a pattern that would define his career. The film culminates with Dylan’s controversial shift in style, marking the turning point that would further separate him from his early folk roots and cement his place as a boundary-pushing artist.

One notable omission in the film is the role of Dylan’s girlfriend, Suze Rotolo, who is portrayed as Sylvie (played by Elle Fanning). While the film offers glimpses of their relationship, it largely underplays her influence on his artistry. A brief caption at the film’s end mentions her role in shaping his political consciousness, but there’s little exploration of their dynamic or her impact on his development as a musician. This oversight feels like a missed opportunity to delve deeper into the personal connections that shaped Dylan’s political and musical evolution.

Like other films about Dylan, from D.A. Pennebaker’s Don’t Look Back to Todd Haynes’s I’m Not There, A Complete Unknown emphasizes how Dylan’s public persona is an artistic construct, where fact and fiction intertwine. Mangold’s film offers moments where the audience catches glimpses of Dylan’s true self, such as when his high school yearbook surfaces, bearing his real name, Robert Zimmerman. In another scene, Sylvie confronts Bob about his refusal to discuss his past, a topic he brushes off as irrelevant to his larger mission. These scenes underscore the theatricality and artifice of Dylan’s persona, which is central to understanding his larger artistic project.

Ultimately, A Complete Unknown provides the best possible answer to the question of “why him?”—a question that will never fully be answered. Dylan’s internal life remains an impenetrable mystery, but his art continues to captivate. The answer, as the film suggests, is as elusive as the wind—something we may never fully grasp but can always feel blowing through his work.