Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Binding: DVD
Brand: I'M NOT THERE (DVD MOVIE)
EAN: 0796019810906
Format: Closed-captioned
Label: Weinstein Company
Manufacturer: Weinstein Company
Number Of Items: 2
Publisher: Weinstein Company
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2008-05-06
Running Time: 135
Studio: Weinstein Company
Theatrical Release Date: 2007-11-21

Related Items
There Will Be Blood (Two-Disc Special Collector's Edition) Charlie Wilson's War (Widescreen) Juno (Single-Disc Edition) Before the Devil Knows You're Dead Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Two-Disc Special Collector's Edition)

Spotlight customer reviews:

Customer Rating:

Summary: Extras-Packed Collector's Edition!
Comment: Director Todd Haynes has reinvented the musician biopic by manipulating its conventions to suit its subject instead of the other way around which is what has always been done in the past. I'm Not There invites us into Bob Dylan's brain and has look at the world through his eyes. We also see how Dylan is perceived by the media and his fans. Because Haynes is pushing the genre to its extremes the film is quite hard to follow at times as we jump all over the place in time and are confronted by various takes on Dylan. However, I think it is a film that will only improves on subsequent viewings as what Haynes is doing becomes more apparent and understood.

On the first disc there is "An Introduction" featuring four text essays that help one get a handle on the film. "Who's Not There: Six Faces of Dylan" explains who each of the six Dylans the actors are playing and what they represent. "Tangled Up in Clues" claims that Haynes' film is "an homage to 1960s art films." It does an excellent job of breaking the film down to its basic elements. "Decoding an Entertaining Enigma" examines each incarnation of Dylan in the film. "Notes on I'm Not There" is written by noted critic Greil Marcus and features a solid analysis of the film.

There is an audio commentary by co-writer/director Todd Haynes. He talks about how he rediscovered Bob Dylan's music and his life via biographies. Haynes talks about how he pitched the project to Dylan and how he was inspired by the cinema of the 1960s because that was the time period where most of the film was set. Haynes certainly knows his Dylan history and does a great job analyzing his film and talking about the changes he made while shooting it. This is an engaging and informative track.

There is also an option to have the lyrics to the songs that appear on-screen.

The second disc features two theatrical trailers and an unreleased flash card trailer done in the style of the famous "Subterranean Homesick Blues" video with the cast.

There are "Audition Tapes" for Marcus Carl Franklin and Ben Whishaw. They both do a good job embodying the character they would eventually play.

Also included are two deleted scenes with Blanchett as Dylan messed up on drugs and another with Gere as Dylan during his western phase.

There are four alternate/extended scenes that provide an interesting, different take on these scenes.

An "Outtakes" gag reel features the cast and crew goofing around.

"A Tribute to Heath Ledger" features a montage of clips of the late actor in character and on the set. It is a sobering reminder of what a great talent has been lost with his tragic death.

"The Red Carpet Premiere" in November 2007 features footage of Haynes and his cast walking the red carpet and interacting with the press.

"Making the Soundtrack" examines how they mixed covers of Dylan's songs with original versions by the man himself. Haynes enlisted Sonic Youth's Lee Ronaldo to supervise some of the music and musicians like John Doe recorded their versions of key songs in the film. Assembling the soundtrack was as unconventional as the film itself.

"Conversation with Todd Haynes" features the director going in detail about his film explaining the title, the origins of the project, and so on. It's a nice compliment to his commentary track even if there is some overlap.

"Dylanography" includes the one-page proposal Haynes sent Dylan in order to get his approval for the film. There is also a chronology of the musician's life, a discography of his extensive output, books he's written, pages from the director's notebook, and stills of the various characters.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Hyperintrospective Nonlinear Dylan
Comment: Not for everyone. But for those who appreciate Dylan and dare venture from the beaten track, a must-see. It's a dose of abstract introspection from six different Dylans. I was particularly impressed by Kate Blanchett's young iconoclastic Dylan. Thought she played the best Dylan of the six and deserves some sort of nomination. Chistian Bale did well too.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Zero Stars!
Comment: Probally one of the worst movies I've ever seen, no joke. Maybe you had to be a die-hard Dylan fan to like this, but I didn't feel this film one bit.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Great movie, but not for everyone
Comment: This movie is as great as all the 5-star reviews say, BUT only for a select group of viewers who can accept film as a non-linear, surreal medium of expression and invention. DO NOT expect this movie to be a staight forward documentary. DO NOT expect to learn factual information about Bob Dylan. DO NOT expect a linear story of any kind. DO NOT see this movie if you want to understand everything in every scene, if you need every thing to make sense, if you need a basic good vs bad plot and a happy ending.
DO SEE this movie if you'd like to see a talented filmmaker breaking new ground and shaping stories, legends and songs into a dreamlike cinematic mosaic unlike anything that's been done before!

Customer Rating:

Summary: Best Picture of 2007
Comment: Should have at least been nominated.

If you have any interest in Bob Dylan and in very intelligent and strikingly original films -- you have to see this.

It's really an entertaining and fascinating film on many levels. Never seen anything like it. I saw it in the theater and wanted very much to see it a second time, but by the time I had a chance it was too late. So, I'm looking forward to it's release on DVD at which time I will promptly order my copy. I say it deserved the best picture nomination and I said that as a great fan of NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN and MICHEAL CLAYTON. 2007 was an amazing year for the movies! On THAT I think we can all agree.

Really this film largely has to do with the fabrication of social realities and personal identity, particularly through media. Do not expect a conventional movie here. This movie takes apart the standard biopic and rearranges the pieces, exploring and calling into question our perceptions. Dylan said he's "got to be me, whoever that is". He's got to be himself, whoever that is. This film shows that there is not really any "self" there that he is being or, at least, _has_ to be, in a certain sense.

All the performances were great. Not just Cate Blanchett who did a marvelous and most memorable job and deserves the recognition. I wonder if we'll be able to forget her when we look at those old black and white photos and footage (particularly from DON'T LOOK BACK). All the portrayals of Dylan were fantastic. Heath Ledger was standout and, needless to say, it's heartbreaking watching his performance now. And (on a lighter note) you got to love David Cross as Allen Ginsberg.

After having rambled on about all this, you can't leave out the music. If for nothing else, watch this movie for the music!

More Reviews

Editorial Reviews:

Unapologetically audacious, I'm Not There is more post-modern puzzle than by-the-numbers biopic. A title card sets the scene: "Inspired by the music and many lives of Bob Dylan." Yet the film features no figure by that name. Instead, writer/director Todd Haynes presents six characters, each incarnating different stages in the artist's career. Perfume's Ben Whishaw, a black-clad poet, serves as a slippery sort of narrator. The action begins with the wanderings of an 11-year-old black runaway named "Woody Guthrie" (Marcus Carl Franklin)--his raucous duet with Richie Havens on "Tombstone Blues" is a highlight--and ends with a silver-haired Billy the Kid (Richard Gere) watching the Old West die before his eyes. In the interim, there's the folk singer-turned-preacher (Christian Bale), the actor (Heath Ledger), and the rock star (Cate Blanchett, who has Don't Look Back Dylan down to a science). The chronology is purposefully non-linear, and editor Jay Rabinowitz cuts rapidly, Jean-Luc Godard-style, between cinma vrit black-and-white and saturated color, Richard Lester-like slapstick and Fellini-inspired surrealism (Ed Lachman served as cinematographer).

What makes the picture fun for Dylan fans--and potentially frustrating for neophytes--is that every album and movie bears an alternate title. Ledger's Robbie, for instance, stars in "Grain of Sand," actually a reference to the Pete Seeger song. As in Haynes' glam rock reverie Velvet Goldmine, the trickery involves the entire cast. While Julianne Moore plays former lover Alice, a dead ringer for Joan Baez; Michelle Williams embodies elusive scenester Coco, i.e. Edie Sedgwick. If I'm Not There is less affecting than Control, the year's other big music film, it rewards repeat viewings like few biographical features. The soundtrack mixes originals with covers, like Jim James's heartfelt "Goin' to Acapulco." --Kathleen C. Fennessy