Based on a 2015 book titled ‘Dylan Goes Electric!’ By Elijah Wald, A Complete Unknown taps into the fabric of storytelling wonderfully well. For instance, the political landscape of a nation is played out in the background even while being introduced to a young Bob Dylan (Timothee Chalamet) enters a bar in search for his idol. This is particularly interesting because at a later point in the film, you see Bob subtly transforming into a political activist as well, playing ‘Masters Of War’ in a club against the backdrop of a Cuban Missile Crisis that made for a strong political statement. Elsewhere, a fellow artist and Bob’s mentor Pete Seeger (Edward Norton) is also shown to be attending a courtroom case to fight for his freedom of expression. In a another world, the drama may well have been Seegar’s impressions of Bob that may have made for an interesting conflict – of being caught between the traditions of folk music and a rebel who would soon revolutionalize the industry while pushing him on the brink of irrelevancy. But the focus remains on Bob who slowly begins to make waves in the folk music community.

One of the most interesting aspects of the drama remains its characterization. And mainly, the characters of the film are treated as Bob’s relationship with his acoustic guitar. In other words, it is tumultuous in many ways given his inclination to push the envelope as far as music is concerned. In a scene, you see a character comparing herself to the ‘strings of a guitar’ that Bob used to make a living out of, before casually moving on to his next yet controversial milestone of an electric guitar. This typifies his relationship with Sylvia Russo (Elle Fanning), a character modelled on Bob’s then girlfriend Suze Rotolo, who never really gets to know Bob as a person even while he gains popularity. On the other hand, this dynamics also extends to Joan Benz (Monica Barbaro) who does ignite a spark of originality in Bob, by coaxing him to move out of the covers that he sings, but is soon lost in translation given her idea of sticking to the ‘popular’ songs as opposed to Bob aspiring to play original compositions.

In many ways, the writing here does tap into the journey of Bob that remains internal and ‘unknown’ to most folks around him (hence also the title). It isn’t easy to imagine a young boy in his 20s who is at the peak of his popularity, yet unfulfilled with his creativity or the freedom to express, while being burdened by the expectations of the community. In scenes of pandemonium, you see a glum looking protagonist making his way through the streets, at times being casually dismissive of his fans who also do not allow him to fully express. His journey is similar to any ‘superstars’ of the film industries who may wish to explorw different genres on celluloid, but are tied up by the expectations of the fandom. It is similar tonwjat Zafar (Hrithik Roshan) says in Luck By Chance(2009) – he wants to work in different genres but instead he is working for the man in the mirror. This automatically makes the drama a complex watch wherein you also witness the rise of a rebel who soon wished to revolutionalize the music industry, even at the cost of being booed as an immediate effect. And so, his inspiration slowly shifts from Seeger to Johnny Cash (Boyd Holbrook), who remains encouraging unlike the former who is rigid with his thinking. It also highlighted the subtle commentary of insecurity amongst the members of the community who were dismissive of his mercurial rise, a form of power politics that always wished to repress an individual under their wings.

The events leading to the final act are more about two contrasting occasions in the life of Bob Dylan that actually have a mini arc too. So in a scene, you witness him playing ‘The Times They Are A Changin..’, a song that everybody grooves too and joins into. But at the infamous Newport concert of 1965, an original masterpiece is lost in translation with the crowd turning hostile. The different just wasn’t in the originality of the song but also the acoustics in play – the former was played in a more traditional style using an acoustic guitar as opposed to the latter wherein an electric guitar was used. This itself marked an arc of sorts as far as the protagonist was concerned, and on his inclination in his future endeavors.

And this is where the end becomes symbolic as well. You see him visiting Guthrie (his idol) for the last time, almost bidding a goodbye to his acoustic style of play while incorporating a silent thank you for being a starting point in his journey. This, while riding away into the future, being symbolic of his new journey with the electric guitar that would see him break many grounds. In fact, the black screen at the end was also symbolic of the ‘mystery’ with respect to his personality that he wished to keep in track, given how he rarely made public appearances after this point, even while churning out one blockbuster after another. There were so many shades to the screenplay that elevated the drama while beautifully contributing to the fabric of its storytelling.