Why The Music In A Complete Unknown Feels Different From Other Biopics

The music in A Complete Unknown feels different from most other musician biopics — it’s much more authentic and atmospheric — and there’s a good reason for that. Rather than trying to chronicle its subject’s entire life, A Complete Unknown captures a specific chapter in Bob Dylan’s storied career. Based on the book Dylan Goes Electric! by Elijah Wald, A Complete Unknown begins with Dylan’s arrival on the New York folk scene in 1961 and continues up to his fateful performance with an electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965.

Although A Complete Unknown makes some changes to the true story and takes some artistic liberties with its subject matter, there’s a lot the biopic gets right. Timothée Chalamet nails Dylan’s mysterious aura and creative genius. Director James Mangold immerses viewers in the New York of the ‘60s and a transformative period for the music industry. The film has a loose, hangout feel; it’s more of a character study than a strict narrative. It also has much more vibrant musical sequences than the average music biopic — and there’s a fascinating behind-the-scenes reason for that.

Musician Biopics Usually Make Their Music Sound Too Clean & Manufactured In Post

The Music In Elvis & Bohemian Rhapsody Is Very Artificial

Austin Butler as Elvis Presley singing onstage in Elvis. — Austin Butler as Elvis Presley singing onstage in *Elvis.*

Typically, biopics of musicians tend to overproduce their music in post. They’ll touch up the actors’ singing electronically or replace their voice altogether with a better singer. They’ll add in all the instruments and orchestrations as a flat layer of soundtrack in the editing bay. This usually makes the music sound too polished to really immerse viewers in the moment. It’s like the record is being played over the scene; the music isn’t an integral component of the scene itself. This process makes the music in biopics like Elvis and Bohemian Rhapsody sound too clean and manufactured.

A Complete Unknown's Actors Performed All The Music Live During Filming

The Cast Played Their Own Instruments & Did Their Own Singing

What makes the music in A Complete Unknown sound different from the music in other musician biopics is that all the music was recorded in-camera. The cast of A Complete Unknown all played their own instruments and did their own singing (via Entertainment Weekly). Mangold didn’t meddle with their performances in post; he just put a camera in front of the actors and captured their honest-to-God musicianship. This required a lot of commitment from the actors, but it made all the difference to the final product. They’re not just actors pretending to be musicians — they’re the real deal.

The title of A Complete Unknown is taken from the chorus of Dylan’s classic 1965 single “Like a Rolling Stone.”

Chalamet learned how to perform 40 Dylan songs and played them all on the set. He played the guitar, played the harmonica, and sang on all these songs for however many takes Mangold wanted to get. Edward Norton performed all his own music as Pete Seeger, Monica Barbaro performed all her own music as Joan Baez, and Boyd Holbrook performed all his own music as Johnny Cash. The actors all mastered the chosen instruments of the musical icons they were playing and put their own unique spin on their classic records.

According to sound mixer Tod Maitland, the crew didn’t use any earpieces or timing mechanisms, so the songs in A Complete Unknown are all performed 100% live.

These in-camera performances utilized period-accurate microphones and instruments. Chalamet, who co-produced the film in addition to starring in it, didn’t want A Complete Unknown to have any “element of artifice.” According to sound mixer Tod Maitland, the crew didn’t use any earpieces or timing mechanisms, so the songs in A Complete Unknown are all performed 100% live. There’s no Hollywood trickery; just pure, unadulterated, unadorned music.

The In-Camera Performances Make A Complete Unknown Feel Like A Concert Film

It Has The Atmosphere Of A Live Show

Bob Dylan and Joan Baez sing into a microphone in A Complete Unknown

The in-camera performances make A Complete Unknown feel more like a concert film than a standard biopic. When the camera watches Chalamet’s Dylan take the stage in a muggy underground nightclub and slowly pushes in as he plays “I Was Young When I Left Home” in its entirety, A Complete Unknown captures the atmosphere of a live show. Most music biopics are underwhelming, because they usually feel fake and artificial, but A Complete Unknown is as authentic and realistic as they come.

The crowd’s reactions feel real, too. It doesn’t feel like extras responding to direction, because they’re actually being treated to the performance their characters are reacting to. When the Newport audience responds enthusiastically to Dylan’s debut of “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” their enthusiasm feels real. When he plays “Like a Rolling Stone” with an electric guitar and the folk fans feel betrayed, their anger feels real, too. A lot of musical biopics have actors doing a spot-on impression of legendary musicians, but none of them have planted their audience at a concert like A Complete Unknown.

Source: Entertainment Weekly