I'm Not There

I'm Not There by Todd Haynes is part of the Special Presentations program.

Formerly going by the title of "I'm Not There: Suppositions on a Film Concerning Dylan", this is a film about the life of Bob Dylan. The film follows seven characters, each embodying a different aspect of Dylan's life story and music. It's the first biographical feature project to secure the approval of the pop culture icon. The film is about the life of Bob Dylan's early days as a struggling folksinger, the rise to the forefront of the early-'60s folk scene, the controversial switch to rock, the motorcycle accident and the subsequent retreat from public view, and the latter-day de-emphasis of recording and concentration on the concert series known as the Never Ending Tour. Sounes somehow has uncovered some new information in that oft-scanned showbiz legend, mostly about Dylan's childhood and his jealously guarded family life. Some of it actually provides further insight into his songs, particularly those about his wife, Sara (Charlotte Gainsbourg). Sounes also blows the lid off Dylan's heretofore unknown 1986 marriage to one of his backup singers. Each story expresses an aspect of Dylan's mercurial personality and each story is to be filmed differently, in a style appropriate to its theme: Woody - an 11-year-old black boy, always on the run; Robbie - a womanizing performer, always on the road; Jude (Cate Blanchett) - the young androgynous rock star; John/Jack (Christian Bale) - a folk idol who reinvents himself as an evangelist; Billy (Richard Gere) - the famous outlaw, miraculously alive but growing old.

Not sure about this one as I'm not a huge Dylan fan. But it's got a standout cast and a really good director (Far from Heaven, Velvet Goldmine) that has me at least curious. There's a clip of the film on YouTube that let's you see some of the style the film is being shot in.