Best Actress in a Supporting Role 2007: Cate Blanchett in I'm Not There

Cate Blanchett received her fourth/fifth Oscar nomination for her performance as Jude Quinn in I'm Not There.

I'm Not There is a very interesting movie about six different characters, each representing a facet of Bob Dylan's life and work. It's an excellent movie that is masterfully directed by the always brilliant Todd Haynes and one I particularly appreciate because of its unconventionality as a biopic. I actually don't love all of the segments but the way they intertwine with each other is what makes the movie truly great. Richard Gere's segment is simply pointless but all of the others are interesting to watch at the very least. I also would like to single out Edward Lachman's wonderful cinematography.

Cate Blanchett plays the role of Jude Quinn, a character who embodies the 1965-1966 phase of Bob Dylan's life. Casting a female actor in a male role is always a bold choice that can very easily lead to terrible results: the actress could easily be unconvincing in the role, and considering how iconic the role of Bob Dylan is the performance could have felt mannered and overcooked. But Cate Blanchett, one of the most talented and versatile performers ever, completely delivers in the role and gives an incredible performance that stands as one of the most interesting and admirable piece of work I've ever seen. Blanchett completely nails the tics and mannerisms the character requires without ever making them feel forced or unconvincing - they simply are part of what Jude is. Her vocal work is oustanding as well: Blanchett has always been a master at modulating her voice but here it's particularly excellent because she truly sounds like a man - she completely makes you forget she is Cate Blanchett, the actress, but instead she simply becomes the role of Jude Quinn; her work here never feels like an imitation, but more like a complete and deep embodiment of the character. 

Whenever she's on screen, it's impossible to take your eyes off her: she's a charismatic and unpredictable presence and you never once doubt Jude Quinn's star-power and appeal. Blanchett is amazing in portraying Jude's unique and puzzling personality: moments like when he is asked to say a word to his fans and he answers "Astronaut", or when, during a brilliantly acted sequence that takes place at a press conference, he is asked to talk about other musicians who use their music as a protest and he answers "I think there are about 136", are all brilliant, unforgettable moments that contribute to the overall characterization of the indecipherable figure of Jude. She properly makes Jude a larger-than-life, even off-putting figure without ever becoming too unrealistic or caricatural, finding the perfect balance in her portrayal that is both dream-like and utterly real. There is an otherworldly quality in her performance that perfectly sets the atmosphere of Jude's segment and lets you into Jude's hypnotic and hallucinogenic own dimension (he spends most of the time on amphetamines). But Blanchett never goes too far with this aspect and keeps Jude in a place between realistic and otherworldly, between human and transcendent.

But Blanchett goes far beyond portraying Jude's eccentric personality and finds the humanity in Jude without ever trying to simplify his character, which always remains an interesting mistery that cannot be resolved. Scenes involving his former lover Coco Rivington (Michelle Williams) or Jude's meeting with the poet Allen Ginsberg (a pitch-perfect David Cross) allow Blanchett to add some depth to the character and fully realize the character's confused and washed up emotional state. Under his seemingly detatched and careless attitude, Blanchett shows that there is a man on the verge of a collapse: in fact, Jude's fans have turned their back on him after he switched from folk to rock music and Blanchett does a great job in subtly showing how Jude is actually hurt by it. The scene in which Jude is interviewed by journalist Keenan Jones (Bruce Greenwood), who accuses him of not really caring about anything while being very self-conscious at the same time, is a terrific scene that is brilliantly acted by Blanchett: she does a phenomenal job in showing for the first time the character's insecurities and vulnerabilities and her line-delivery of "I have no such feelings" is amazing, cold yet bitterly sad at the same time. Another moment I absolutely love of her portrayal is the scene in which Keenan reveals on television Jude's true identity, a middle-class educated man instead of a rough vagabond as Jude himself previously claimed: in that brief moment, Blanchett briefly drops the façade and lets us see the fragile man inside Jude, the controversial artist. But her best scene is actually her final scene in the back of the car: Jude's monologue about the immortality of music is amazingly delivered by Blanchett who finally unleashes the feelings of loneliness and pain she only suggested previously - and with her final delivery of "Everybody knows I'm not a folk singer" and that last, brilliant, enigmatic smile she ends her performance on a glorious note.

This is a truly masterful performance from Cate Blanchett who makes Jude's segment by far the strongest of the whole movie. She's completely convincing as a man but that's even the least impressive thing out of what she accomplishes in this performance: she completely becomes the character portraying exceptionally its explosive and charismatic personality while subtly showing its deeper feelings and emotions. It's a compelling work that is endlessly fascinating from beginning to end.

5/5