So says Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac), the immensely talented but too-proud-for-his-own-good folk singer at the center of Joel and Ethan Coen’s latest film, Inside Llewyn Davis. Set in the epicenter of hipness (Greenwich Village, New York in 1961), Inside Llewyn Davis captures, with astounding accuracy, the sights and sounds of a very specific period in the history of American music. Yet another brilliant work of filmmaking from the Coen Brothers, Inside Llewyn Davis is perhaps only the second time (after No Country for Old Men) the brothers have valued authenticity over the more common absurdity that permeates their work. As with No Country, the result is nothing shy of magnificent.
We follow Llewyn over the course of one tumultuous week as he battles one setback after another. A professional couch-surfer, Llewyn apparently has no fixed address and is able to carry on his back everything he owns. He’s argumentative and rarely grateful for the endless favors he’s afforded, but somehow he manages to get by. His most grounded connection, Jean (Carey Mulligan), is also his most vocal critic, a friend and sometimes lover who may or may not be pregnant with his child despite being married to Llewyn’s friend Jim (Justin Timberlake). This is the least of Llewyn’s concerns as he watches his chances for success recede into the distance, a combination of his own fault and that of the changing landscape of the folk music scene.
Though it was written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, Inside Llewyn Davis is as much the result of executive music producer T Bone Burnett’s influence as either of the Coens. Burnett, who worked with the Coens to craft the bluegrass soundtrack of O Brother, Where Art Thou?, has compiled a sampling of traditional folk songs that perfectly reflect the time and place of the film while also acknowledging the influence of the genre on future generations of musicians. The music is so affecting, in part, because each cast member sings live throughout the film. We hear the songs not just as they could be sung, but exactly how each character would sing them. Burnett is joined by associate music producer Marcus Mumford (front man of the band Mumford & Sons) who not only helped choose the music but also joins Isaac on the film’s most significant track.
Isaac, whose talent has been languishing in obscurity for far too long, gives a performance so fully realized that, like Daniel Day-Lewis, he appears not to be acting at all. Llewyn is a self-absorbed man-child whose arrested development is almost suffocating. But, through Isaac, we don’t vilify him but find ourselves rooting for him to overcome the obstacles that keep getting thrown in his way. The smartest choice on the part of the Coens was to open the film with a full performance of “Hang Me, Oh Hang Me,” sung by Llewyn in the shadowy, smoky Gaslight Café where anybody whose anybody comes to perform. In one beautiful performance, we see that Llewyn is terrifically gifted and deserves the success he craves. By introducing him to us this way, we immediately align ourselves with his cause instead of writing him off as just an arrogant musician.
As always, the Coens cast excellent actors in every role. Mulligan gives the funniest performance in the film, with Jean choosing to refer to Llewyn as “Asshole” instead of his name. The love/hate chemistry of Isaac and Mulligan is real and thick and uncomfortable, exactly the way these two should behave. Having proven she is more than capable as a singer in Shame, Mulligan takes part in only one song, but stands out against Justin Timberlake (no small feat). For his part, Timberlake is likeable, but the character of Jim is perhaps the film’s only underwritten part. Timberlake assisted a great deal behind the scenes with the musical arrangements, so his contributions are far greater than what is seen on screen.
As with nearly every Coen Brothers film, there is much more happening than what appears at first glance. Inside Llewyn Davis may be the first time the Coens have behaved in any kind of self-reflexive manner, making more than a few nods to O Brother, which is without a doubt a companion piece to this film. Llewyn’s odyssey is one of cyclical events and themes that keep coming back to taunt (or haunt) him. Over and over, Llewyn leaves (an apartment, a venue or even a city) only to return again. There are so many recurring images in the film that, like No Country, Llewyn Davis will be endlessly watchable just to attempt unlocking the myriad allusions and repetitions.
Inside Llewyn Davis will rank among the Coen Brothers’ finest works, both for its subtly genius storytelling as well as its perfect partnership of cinema and music.
Grade: A+
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