kevdonahue.com

I caught “A Complete Unknown,” the movie about Bob Dylan’s emergence as a cultural force, and I’m trying to understand how it is landing so heavily in my own house.

My wife, not a Dylanphile at all, has been intrigued for two days now. She has asked me for Spotify playlists that correspond to the scenes in the movie.

It’s not just my house, though I get that the houses I’m talking about are home to people who are older and white, and that its box office isn’t even in the top 5 for the week. That said, some guy friends are going to see it Tuesday and I’ll meet them afterward to discuss, because they want to discuss it — that’s as close to a book group as 60-something men will get.

The farther I get from it, the more brilliant I think Timothée Chalamet was in playing Dylan. He did a wonderful job of playing his cards close to his hand. That’s what Dylan does! He’s a troublemaker, a loki, and his secret is he doesn’t tip his cards. As a poet, as a musician, as a lover. It’s what you love about him and what can make him so frustrating.

And yet, somehow, he maintained his equanimity through it all. He was both the instigator and the commentator.

And most importantly, he brought the goods. Unbelievable song upon unbelievable song, with a healthy dose of discombobulation.

I hope the film gives Bob some joy, and recognition (though the guy has a Nobel prize for literature, I believe, so maybe he doesn’t need any more recognition), and maybe even some encouragement, at age 83, to keep creating. We need all the creative energy we can get.