In the place of storytelling that promises “to reveal the ‘real person’ behind the public persona” in conventional celebrity biopics through narrativization, I’m Not There explores the tensions between the irreducibility of identity, and the impulse to embody the complex and contradictory nature of human existence on film by highlighting biopic representation as a textual construct through its use of intertextual allusion, quotation, and pastiche. By taking Bob Dylan as the film’s subject-a persona both engrained in the contemporary American imaginary and openly acknowledged as a constantly shifting, intertextual and fabricated construct- I’m Not There mobilizes the figure (or more aptly, the ghost) of Bob Dylan as a conduit for identity per se. Rather than focusing on individual agency as a conduit of history, I’m Not There investigates identity itself. Yet, I’m Not There presents a more radical departure from the traditional biopic than these contemporary entries into the tradition. The biopic genre is, as Belén Vidal asserts, often viewed as a retreat into traditional, conservative and formulaic modes of storytelling in which “personality and point of view become the conduit of history in stories that often boil down complex social processes to gestures of individual agency.” While this traditional approach has maintained popularity, some contemporary biopics, such as American Splendor (2003) and Bernie (2011), have revised conventional approaches to subject selection, narrative perspective, and tone. The utterance speaks to the film’s thwarting of the generic conventions as a biopic, and, through its intertextual reflexivity, to its thematic concern with the irreducible, and ineffable nature of individual existence. This moment, however, functions beyond its narrative and character specificity.

Quinn’s incredulous laughter demonstrates that the profile presented to the public is not an accurate reflection of his identity.

Pennebaker’s famous Dont Look Back (1967) Savoy Hotel ‘Dylan the man’ sequence, Quinn laughs, ‘God, I’m glad I’m not me!’ in response to the profile’s hyperbolic assertions. Halfway through Todd Haynes’ experimental Bob Dylan biopic, I’m Not There (2007), Jude Quinn (Cate Blanchett) reads a character profile of himself in a newspaper. I’m Not There explores the irreducibility of identity by highlighting biopic representation as a textual construct through intertextual allusion, quotation, and pastiche. Rather than focusing on individual agency as a conduit of history, I’m Not There uses the figure of Bob Dylan as a conduit for identity per se. I’m Not There presents a radical departure from the traditional biopic.

Alice greenwood personal nightmare