That's why I love Todd Haynes' I'm Not There. It focuses on Bob Dylan the same way you can never really focus on anything in your periphery. He's there, but not in name. A variety of characters in
different times, places, situations personify different layers of Dylan. It's gritty, truthful, sometimes even a little absurd (a giraffe in a wild west Halloween town?). More importantly, it reminds me of what really great art, music, and writing can do. It can cut past the fluff and get down to some bit of raw truth, even if you don't know what that truth is supposed to be. Plus, Cate Blanchett plays a really rowdy dude (see bottom middle picture). Awesome. Awesome to the nth degree. Ok...enough of such adult things. As you may or may not know, I'm working on my own YA book and I'm struggling with balancing the fantastic with something really honest. I'm Not There helped me with this and planted a seed for a new character--Amos! I don't know a whole lot about him yet, but I'm really excited to get to know him! I think he's going to be pretty interesting.
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