eric vaughn

The parts of Dylan and Pete Seeger were well acted, with Seeger's character ultimately showing far and away the most development. This, however doesn't save A Complete Unknown from itself. Many opportunities to show the effect Dylan had on the political landscape or even just the landscape were squandered by portraying Dylan as an enigmatic, at times egotistical, artist. Having grown up listening to Dylan, his method of songwriting and ability to stay in his artistic lane were of personal interest to me. Instead, we were treated to an over-long, hit-and-miss biopic punctuated with close ups of Dylan's brooding eyes with no attempt at trying to see what might lie behind those moody stares. Granted, Dylan WAS/IS enigmatic, and HAD/HAS those brooding eyes, and may not be able to even EXPLAIN his creative processes. But trying to understand this wildly popular singer-songwriter is like trying to explain why some supported the Vietnam War while others would do anything to try and stop it (and I don't mean soldiers or Dylan himself). Most filmmakers have failed at this as well. Some things need no explanation; however, Dylan was a product of those times. Do I need to know his creative process? Absolutely not. Because the music is there. Do I need to see him brood on film. There are thousands of photos and probably hundreds of hours of him performing. What is there most of all, is the music. And while the film tried to make the music an important part of the film, I will close with my opinion that the music should have been the MOST important part.