Einstein disguised as Robin Hood
“I’ve got my Bob Dylan mask on … I’m masquerading.” - Bob Dylan, Halloween, 1964 Going Electric , the working title of a new Bob Dylan biopic, will apparently focus on his fabled conversion from ‘voice-of-a-generation’ folk singer to rock ’n’ roll icon. Perhaps director James Mangold and lead actor Timothée Chalamet will make an interesting film that introduces Dylan’s music to a new generation of fans, but it’s difficult to imagine what fresh interpretation could be brought to an episode in popular music history already so well documented and mythologised. A straight-up portrayal in the same vein as Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash, or Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles, for example, would surely feel trite, even cringeworthy. There’s lots of performances, interviews and behind-the-scenes footage of mid-60s Dylan on tape, so why bother with a rehash? There’s also already been an excellent fictional dramatisation on screen of Dylan’s career. Todd Haynes’ I’m Not There (2007) pa