WHILE I WAS EATING MY LUNCH in the school cafeteria, a commotion was brewing at the table next to me. Two girls were arguing about something. It was my freshman year, and they were unfamiliar to me. Because of the rise in volume of their voices, I started packing my food up in case I had to make a quick exit to another table. A third girl who had been sitting at the opposite end of the two girls’ table stood up and walked over to them. It was hard to hear her, but my curiosity had been aroused. The girl who came over to them was going back and forth between the two seated girls, talking to one then the other and so on. I heard her asking them questions then offering advice. As fast as the argument flared up, it had now died down and by the time the standing girl went back to her side of the table, the other two girls were finishing their lunch and saying goodbye to each other. I found the whole thing a bit strange, and it was funny that an image had popped into my brain, as the questioning took place, of a courtroom attorney interrogating two witnesses. Shortly after, I was done eating and started gathering stuff to get ready for next period’s class.      SECOND SEMESTER, IN MY EUROPEAN HISTORY class, I recognized that girl who was defusing the argument that took place between those two other girls in the cafeteria. It did not take long to learn her name because whenever there was a group discussion, she was always an avid participant. At least half the time when our teacher would ask if there were any questions, she would usually have one. I did not find it annoying because every one of her questions was to the point and enlightening, at least for me. The more I observed her, the more I felt she belonged in a court of law. The way she asked her questions and follow-up ones displayed an insightful thoughtfulness besides being able to cut through the clutter, if that makes sense. I really felt she could go to college to become a lawyer, especially when she was on the school’s debate team. Seeing her in action, one could see the difference between her compared to the other students on the panel. I never heard what happened to her after we graduated high school, but years later I did find out she became a federal judge, living out of state. My impressions were right, she certainly belonged in a courtroom. There are certain people that from early on it is easy to see what they were meant to do. It certainly was the case with the main musician in this biographical, music drama.         ARRIVING IN NEW YORK CITY FROM Minnesota, a young folk singer is getting attention for his songwriting abilities. However, it will be his performance at a folk festival that would make him standout in the music scene. With Timothee Chalamet (Dune Parts 1 and 2, Wonka) as Bob Dylan, Edward Norton (Asteroid City, Fight Club) as Pete Seeger, Elle Fanning (A Rainy Day in New York, The Roads Not Taken) as Sylvie Russo, Monica Barbaro (At Midnight, The Cathedral) as Joan Baez, and Joe Tippett (Mr. Harrigan’s Phone, The Morning Show-TV) as Dave Van Ronk; this film festival winning movie contains a brilliant yet unnerving performance by Timothee. I could not get over how much he was in character, including his own singing. I thought the whole cast was wonderful. Having not been a follower of Bob’s music and life, I was hoping to gain insight into his thought process, but the script did not provide what I needed. The first half of the picture I found was boring at times; the second half had more of my attention. By the end of the film, I still had unanswered questions; however, I still was glad I saw this movie because of Timothee’s performance.

2 ¾ stars