The latest Coen Brothers film, Inside Llewyn Davis, left me feeling like an outsider in more than one respect. Without any real knowledge of the world of folk music or any real connection to the characters, I waited patiently outside to be invited into the story. I was left disappointed when what I expected to be a quiet indie film became a dry 105 minutes that neglected to pull me in.
Although I wanted to like the protagonist Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac), I couldn’t bring myself to consider his bad choices endearing or find any quality I appreciated, except perhaps resilience.
One thing this film did do well was depict the realities of life. Sometimes there is no happy ending, no lessons learned, or any point to the story. True to the genuine human experience, there isn’t always success at the end of hard work, or a punch in the face when you deserve it. It would be an unrealistic stretch then to extract a moral from the story, other than what kind of person not to be like.
A bearded Justin Timberlake gave a fine but far too fleeting performance in the supporting role of Jim Berkey, the faithful husband of Jean Berkey, played by the talented Carey Mulligan. The whole cast sang their songs very well in simple, subdued numbers, accurately portraying the unglamorous life of folk singers, but failing to engage the audience unfamiliar with the style. It was, however, interesting to see the background fashion of New York and Chicago in the 1960s during the film.
Of course, Coen Brothers movies aren’t typically for everyone, and this was no exception, but it did touch on various struggles common to us all. Aging parents, financial woes, and the old broken-condom situation posed the possibility of understanding, but fell short of stimulus.
It felt like the point of view was told more from beside LLewyn Davis, rather than inside. Though the film followed him exclusively, it would have been helpful to further explore his briefly mentioned past and causes of his compassionless character.
I didn’t leave Inside Llewyn Davis all that impressed, and I also didn’t leave wanting to be a folk singer.