Gerald Perman

A well-done movie, Chalomet played his role (and the guitar and vocals) well but he/the role lacked gravitas (he wants to be a “great” actor), Ed Norton was spectacular as Pete Seeger, and the other supporting actors were well-cast and standouts. The screenwriting was also excellent. For someone who lived in Greenwich Village in the summer of 1965, plays guitar and first got into the “folk music” of Bob Dylan and others, the gritty feel of the movie was highly authentic. A Complete Unknown (i.e., as was Dylan when he first arrived in NYC and is a line from “Like a Rolling Stone”) was certainly worth watching. It gave me a view of Dylan’s early career and social life with which I was quite unfamiliar.

This was a difficult movie to watch because of the brutality toward women, blacks and children that was depicted. However, it reflected the reality of the establishment of many cultures, including my own American culture, and the portrayals were exquisitely and beautifully done. It also gave this Yank an appreciation of Australian life in the 1700’s (I think) and that of the so-called aborigines. As a psychiatrist treating the neurotic misery of my patients, it put i to perspective the kinds of massive psychological trauma many people dealt with in the past and are still dealing with in parts of the world today.