Peppermint Friday Film Review #1: I'm Not There

For this blog, as it is called 'Peppermint Friday' I was thinking of doing it as a series where I do a review of a film I watched that week, weather it may be a brand new film, or an older one. Either way its a film thats new to me. We clear? Gooooood.

This week I watched a film called I'm Not There, which is the biopic of Bob Dylan's life, now a couple of days ago I did a blog post of my favorite Biopics, so I thought it would be quite fitting, to end this week by doing a Blog post, of a biopic that I haven't seen before, but I'm not gonna do the Friday Reviews like this, it would just be films, that I never seen before.

Anyway, I watched this film and I loved the way they did the times of Bob Dylan, like they didn't really use his name, like when he's a kid, he calls himself 'Woody Guthrie' as a kid, Bob was obsessed with the Singer, and it's great how they did that. It allowed for them to have creativity, and it get to know the feel of Bob Dylan. The whole Bob Dylan vibe, Todd Haynes did an amazing job directing this, and I could see where he is coming from. 

I thought having Cate Blanchett playing him in the 60s, is the best, she does it so well. I wouldn't think for a second she did it less than being true and honest. It was kinda like a Mick Jagger, she was this skinny, smoking, deep talking, human being.

The colors, and the atmosphere of where its set at a particular time, is just beautiful in 60's for Cate Blanchett, it was all black and white, where they was a sense of being cool, because thats what we associate with the 60's. With it being in different times, and the whole timeline was amazing, I loved the feel of all the times, like the 50s, 60s, 70s. You get the feel of Bob Dylan, and I loved the music for different times, and different aspects of his life, and the film's course, and where it was going.

I also loved this film because I felt watching it, really trendy and its sorta made me get into Bob Dylan's music. Which before I never got into, I knew who he was, but I loved it. Which is why I loved this film, it got me into something I never thought I could.

The other people in this film who play Bob Dylan, are; Richard Gere, Christian Bale, Heath Ledger. They all do an amazing job, the crazy thing for me is they're all Bob Dylan, like in different aspects of his life, and different characteristics. They all the same, and it goes to show what kind of man he was to have a film about him, but not played by the same person, and not played as 'Bob Dylan' like at the beginning when he is a little boy he's played by a black boy, as Woody Guthrie. 

Richard Gere is Billy the Kid, as Bob Dylan and thats set in the Wild West, its a crazy, crazy, amazing film. Its bursting with the behind the scenes creativity, you don't see the film in its mode, but you know it you can tell the creativity. They didn't go 'oh lets make a film about Bob Dylan, can you get an actor to play him from a kid to an adult?' they went beyond that, and changed the aspects but still remaining true to the person he is. Theres something with the character of a musician who has that thing to him, that isn't part of the mainstream style, but at the same time he is. The way I kinda see it is, the weird kid in the corner at school, and he leaves school, still being the weird kid, and he does really well. Then everyone wants to be friends with the weird kid, but then he becomes cool, but still weird. I feel like this film is that, the film of the weird but cool kid, and to do it in a way of 'Lets make a Bob Dylan Film' would be crap they needed to do it in a creative way, and get a feel of the film. 

Overall I'd say watch it weather you like Bob Dylan or not its a very good film.