Some of Dylan's songs feature in the film

The �7m movie Masked and Anonymous, directed by Larry Charles and written by Charles and Dylan, was labelled "an unholy, incoherent mess" by the New York Times.

An all-star cast including Penelope Cruz, Jessica Lange, Ed Harris, Angela Bassett and Mickey Rourke failed to save the film from the negative press.

"The look of the film is great, the soundtrack glorious, but more often than not the dialogue is atrocious, featuring a lot of long-winded gobbledygook," said LA Times reviewer, Kevin Thomas.

The New Jersey Star Ledger said Cruz seemed "lost" in her role and said Harris seemed "weird" as an entertainer with an Al Jonson black face.

The film centres on singer Jack Fate (Dylan), whose career has gone on a downward spiral before he is forced to make a comeback on stage for a benefit concert.

It was produced by Scottish-born Nigel Sinclair's company Spitfire Productions which joined forces with the BBC to fund the film.

The LA Times gave the legendary songwriter some credit but had no sympathy for the film itself.

"Not surprisingly, Dylan himself floats above the fray, but since this is his first film in 15 years, it's lamentable that Masked and Anonymous, which is too heavy-handed to be amusing even when it means to be, is a work of such pretentious self-indulgence," wrote Mr Thomas.

In another BBC project, Dylan will give his first full interview about his influential early career in a documentary directed by Martin Scorsese.

It will debut on BBC Two's Arena strand and on a US Public Broadcast Service station, Thirteen/WNET in New York. The transmission date is not yet known.