One notable moment in A Complete Unknown is when Sylvie Russo gets emotional over Bob Dylan and Joan Baez’s duet, raising questions about why she becomes emotional. While A Complete Unknown misses a few details from Dylan’s life during the 1960s, the movie succeeds in creating an accurate representation of the musical icon’s complexities. A Complete Unknown necessarily focuses a lot of attention on Bob Dylan’s music and changing artistic vision over time, but it simultaneously weaves in the importance of Dylan’s relationships, including his time with Sylvie Russo.
The character Sylvie Russo is based on Suze Rotolo, Dylan’s real-life girlfriend during the early 1960s. Their tumultuous relationship is a major feature of A Complete Unknown, with Dylan repeatedly walking in and out of Sylvie’s life as he attempts to grapple with his growing fame. While the movie does depict them breaking up, Bob Dylan ends up inviting Sylvie to the 1965 Newport Folk Festival, seemingly to repair their relationship. However, after Dylan performs with Joan Baez, Sylvie begins to cry and ultimately decides to leave Dylan for good in A Complete Unknown‘s ending.
Bob Dylan & Joan Baez’s “It Ain’t Me Babe” Performance Helps Sylvie Realize The Nature Of Their Relationship
She Knows They Were Having An Affair
A Complete Unknown makes it clear that Bob Dylan and Joan Baez certainly did not always get along, with her kicking him out of her apartment and them arguing over what songs to play on tour. However, when they begin singing at Newport, their chemistry is undeniable. The duo perform “It Ain’t Me Babe” for the crowd to plenty of applause. As she watches them sing, Sylvie senses the tension between Bob and Joan as well and eventually begins to cry. Though she had clearly suspected it in the past, Dylan and Baez’s duet confirms her suspicions about the two.
Sylvie’s tears show that, despite her feelings for Dylan, she knows that he will never fully commit to her and be faithful.
From her position at the side of the stage, Sylvie is able to see the way that Bob Dylan and Joan Baez look at each other, and they are not even trying to hide it. While Sylvie had joined him in Newport in the hopes that they could rekindle their romance, the moment makes it incredibly clear that Dylan will never value her and treat her the way she wants to be treated. Sylvie’s tears show that, despite her feelings for Dylan, she knows that he will never fully commit to her and be faithful.
Bob Dylan & Joan Baez’s Duet Makes Sylvie Decide She Can’t Stay With Bob Anymore
Sylvie Eventually Decides To Choose Herself Over Dylan
Throughout A Complete Unknown, Bob Dylan seems to float in and out of his love interests’ lives without ever really committing. This is true for both Sylvie and Joan, as he appears when he needs something from them, but disappears when his need for freedom, artistic or otherwise, takes over. Though Sylvie is enamored with Dylan’s artistry at the beginning of the film, by the end she realizes that he will always value his music and his freedom over her needs. Sylvie’s decision to leave Newport shows her finally choosing to value her own needs too.
Sylvie crying and leaving during the 1965 Newport Folk Festival is certainly a reflection of her finally and fully grasping that Dylan is having an affair with Joan Baez, but it also feels much bigger than that. One theme that comes up throughout the movie is Dylan’s desire not to be controlled or boxed in any way. He is someone who can never truly be known, even by those closest to him. In that moment, Sylvie finally realizes that Dylan can never truly be hers, as A Complete Unknown makes it clear that Dylan will continue to desire his own freedom.
