Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

[baumer]

Discuss

[Travod]

It's not my favorite Coen brothers film, and people may know that when I heard this was what was coming after True Grit I was very disappointed. But it was still good. The music is excellent, with almost all of the songs being shown in full, and Oscar Isaac has a good voice. Cinematography is sexy as hell. The supporting people all play roles well but are really too small to matter much. If anything, the cat(s) deserve noms. 

 

Which brings me to my critique. It's dark and bleak and depressing really for no apparent reason. Yes, he's an unsuccessful folk singer, but there are parts that are out of no where that have no reason to be there and they pissed me off a lot. And the way the movie ends just made me think that nothing actually happened.

 

Yeah.

[Gopher]

My favorite film of the year, from my favorite directors working today. This may be the Coen's most melancholic story-- there's a profound sense of loss and coldness to Llewyn's life--but it's still incredibly funny, visceral and emotional, and the music adds so much to the film's characters and atmosphere. Llewyn's character study proves how you can pour your heart and soul into what you do and be really good at it, but it doesn't matter if you can't catch a break. The most devastating shot in the film is right before an ass-whooping from a man in the shadows, Llewyn looks at Bob Dylan and realizes that he's not special, that he's not going to make it no matter how much he tries. We laugh at how bleak Llewyn's life is so we don't cry. This is what the Coens excel at and what all of their best films pull this off in spades. Inside Llewyn Davis is absolutely one of their best.

 

I can't wait to go back and back to this film because I feel like there's even more to be unpacked here. 

[Ezen Baklattan]

I missed Oogielove Gopher.  Still, I'm very excited to see this, even if it probably won't come here until after winter break, sadly.

[Gopher]

Llewyn needs his time in the sun. God knows he doesn't get it in this movie. Goofie Oogie will be back in a few weeks.

[The Panda]

"Joel and Ethan are able to take the character Llewyn, make an artistic statement about his life, while still making an enjoyable experience that is devoid of pretension."  

 

Read more at http://thepandaflicksreviews.blogspot.com/2013/12/inside-llewyn-davis-review.html

Edited December 27, 2013 by The Panda

[Cmasterclay]

Loved it. One of my favorites of the year, for sure. Issac is a powerhouse, with an amazing voice. Just beautifully shot and written. Near perfect movie, minus Mulligan yelling every line.  

 

A

[Plain Old Tele]

Great movie; there's that great morbid dark Coen humor flowing throughout, and they're not afraid to have Llewyn be a complete asshole most of the time. And it's got a real insight into the struggle for greatness that everyone with a creative dream faces, along with the stark realization that (for most) that struggle will fail.

 

This makes it sound bleak and depressing beyond belief, but it isn't at all. It's full of life.

Edited December 30, 2013 by Telemachos

[4815162342]

Very fatalistic and ultimately resigning. Lots of classic Coen dark humor and some truly bleak dramatic moments on occasion (Llewyn hitting the cat that may or may not have been faux-Ulysses and watching it limp into the woods). The pacing kinda gets too plodding during the whole Chicago trip segment and Hedlund/Goodman are kinda just there.

 

So it's a strong A movie that has a lesser B/B+ segment sandwiched inside.

[RobinHood26]

The world is so rich and detailed. Amazing performances, cinematography and production design.

 

I liked it a lot, but I didn't quite love it.

 

B (86)

[Beleg Strongbow]

I think I need to see this again, to figure out where it sits with me.

 

Seeing the the trailer beforehand, in hindsight, was very detrimental to my experience. After the movie ended, I concluded that I had already seen the film online--the trailer. I don't doubt that this negatively affected my expectations/approach to watching the film. But, it is what it is, and I'll think of it in the only way I know how.

 

Right now, I would give the film a B rating. My biggest problem with it is that it felt like a Coen Bros. pastiche, created by the Coen Bros., if that makes sense. It's hard to put into the correct words. Perhaps I'll have more concrete thoughts after a second viewing.

[AniNate]

Solid Coen effort with good performances and a familiar but well-told story. Though the music will likely be what I remember most.

 

B+

Edited January 11, 2014 by tribefan695

[Ezen Baklattan]

It's an incredible contradiction. Rarely has a film with such melancholy and coldness been so beautiful and full of life. Inside Llewyn Davis is a masterpiece, marked by masterful direction and a wonderful performance from Isaac. (as well as offbeat and humorous side characters from Goodman and Mulligan) His character tries to be successful, and he does have the talent, but we keep seeing him screw up, and he's not exactly a great person. It's a blend where comedy and drama don't just coexist, but the lines between the two are completely transcended. The Coen Brothers truly are a force to be reckoned with.

 

And that cat. <3

[baumer]

It's pretty much an enormous pile of shit.  Once you leave the theater, ask yourself what you just watched.  What really happened in the film?  Llewyn Davis is a prosaic and boring character.  There is no depth to him and the film is just celluloid.  Incredibly disappointed in this effort from the Coens.

 

5.5/10

[mattmav45]

I'm one of those rare ones that find the Cohen Brothers hit or miss.That being said, I really enjoyed this, and would place it fourth in the Cohen library after Lebowski, Fargo, and No Country. Such impressive design and atmosphere on display here, the film simply has a lot of soul.It must be pointed out this film will only improve upon each re-watch.

Edited January 12, 2014 by mattmav45

[lolifofo]

Not my type of movie. It was fun to watch until it disappoints you by the end with no obvious climax or resolution. At least, that's how it felt to me.

 

B-

[dashrendar44]

There's something truly desperate lingering underneath this movie about artist's plight like Barton Fink and seeps out on the absurdity of life much like A Serious Man.

 

Davis doesn't understand why people don't care much about his music and celebrate his talent as he is trapped into a conundrum of shitty situations (and questionable decisions) but Coen bros, in their caracteristical deadspan sense of dark humor, just posit that's just the way the world goes round.

 

I like how the Coens Bros portrayed the early sixties wintery atmosphere and offer a glimpse of Greenwich Village's effervescence, lot of struggling artists all over the US coming to NYC running after paychecks after paychecks hoping to catch the big break. The whole movie feels like a meandering folk song in which we explore the tribulations of a jewish Sisyphe going round in circles running after a mirage, he's a wandering minstrel carrying his bad luck like a burden hoping his music as a savior. The Chicago trip felt quite dreamlike and random, like we dive into Davis dark psyche questioning the meaning and purpose of it all.

 

For me, one of the stand-out scene is Llewyn Davis heartwrenching rendition of The Death of Queen Jane when he goes A Capella pouring his naked soul to Grossmann staring at him, just to be denied from the ground up. When you feel the movie hit the Zenith, the character hit the Nadir. The fatalistic realization that no matter how hard you'll try, you're nothing special, you will not stand among the crowd because there's always somebody out there who is more lucky, more gifted, more talented and that it all boils down to lucky chance and unfortunate string of events. In that regard, Davis said something like "There are two kinds of people in this world, those that divide people in two categories and the others...". But at the end of the movie, he is reminded with a punch that good ole biblical sayin' "For many are called, but few are chosen.” Llewyn Davis definetely belongs to those "many" like most of us and that's a bummer. But even if the destination is not what many of us envision, that odyssey to bloom is worth to walk through.

 

Delbonnel's work is delightful. Those contrasts are hauntingly beautiful at times marrying the bleakness and immaculate (but thinly veiled) solace embodying the slippery slope between shadow and light Davis is struggling to ride but keeps on falling down literally.

 

Inside Llewyn Davis is one of those folk songs about a poor lad's life you listen on a cold winter that ignites a flame warming your heart.

 

A

Edited July 20, 2014 by dashrendar44

[lilmac]

It's an incredible contradiction. Rarely has a film with such melancholy and coldness been so beautiful and full of life. Inside Llewyn Davis is a masterpiece, marked by masterful direction and a wonderful performance from Isaac. (as well as offbeat and humorous side characters from Goodman and Mulligan) His character tries to be successful, and he does have the talent, but we keep seeing him screw up, and he's not exactly a great person. It's a blend where comedy and drama don't just coexist, but the lines between the two are completely transcended. The Coen Brothers truly are a force to be reckoned with.

 

And that cat. <3

 

 

Just saw the film and I agree completely.  It's a dark and dreary film from a cinematographic standpoint but it really isn't.  I think Isaac is a big reason why it didn't become a snooze fest.  He really inhabited that role and I look forward to his work on Episode VII.

 

B+

[luna]

melancholy with a capital Q. rather likable due to excellent performances by mr puddlebottom and miss sunggleborf. on the other hand, it just feels...insubstantial. i suppose that could be rather the point, but it's pretty much just a quietly depressing but relatively insignificant reflection on autostasis. ok that's a terrible made up word. anyway the best word i can think to sum this film up is 'nice'.

 

6.0

Edited July 15, 2014 by lisa

[GeneralKong]

Probably my favorite film from last year. Just the right combination of nihilism and morbid humor, with terrific acting and wonderfully performed music (yes, a lot of it is covers but Isaac's interpretation is so perfect that you can't tell.)