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Inside Llewyn Davis

From Alfawiki
Inside Llewyn Davis
Company typeFilm
IndustryMotion picture
Founded2013
FounderJoel Coen, Ethan Coen
Headquarters
New York City
,
United States
Area served
International
Key people
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund, F. Murray Abraham, Justin Timberlake, T Bone Burnett
ProductsFilm
ParentStudioCanal (financing), CBS Films (U.S. distribution)

Inside Llewyn Davis () is a 2013 period black comedy-drama crafted by Joel and Ethan Coen, who wrote, directed, produced, and edited the film. Set in 1961, it chronicles a week in the life of Llewyn Davis (portrayed by Oscar Isaac), a folk musician grappling with both career setbacks and personal difficulties. The ensemble cast features Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund, F. Murray Abraham, and Justin Timberlake.

Although the narrative is fictional, it draws heavily from the autobiography of folk artist Dave Van Ronk. Most of the folk music heard throughout the movie was performed live, with executive music production overseen by T Bone Burnett. Principal filming took place in early 2012, mainly around New York City. The project was an international collaboration between production companies from France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with initial financing provided by StudioCanal before an American distributor was secured.

The film debuted at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival on May 19, 2013, where it received the Grand Prix award. It premiered theatrically in France on November 6, 2013, followed by a UK release on January 24, 2014 (distributed by StudioCanal), and had a limited release in the United States by CBS Films starting December 6, 2013, before expanding widely on January 10, 2014. Critically acclaimed, Inside Llewyn Davis earned two Academy Awards nominations for Best Cinematography and Best Sound Mixing alongside three Golden Globe nods for Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical; Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for Isaac; and Best Original Song. It is widely regarded as one of the finest films of the 21st century, ranking 11th in polls conducted by both BBC and The New York Times. Furthermore, it secured 14th place on Rolling Stone magazine’s "50 Best Movies of the 2010s" list and was ranked second on The Hollywood Reporter’s compilation of "50 Best Films of the 21st Century (So Far)."

Plot

In 1961 New York City's Greenwich Village, Llewyn Davis struggles as a folk singer whose solo album Inside Llewyn Davis fails to achieve commercial success. Penniless and without stable lodging, he frequently sleeps on friends' couches. After a performance at The Gaslight Café, he is assaulted in an alleyway by a sharply dressed man.

Llewyn regains consciousness at the apartment of his friends, the Gorfeins. Upon departing, their ginger cat escapes and becomes locked out. He takes responsibility for the feline by bringing it to Jim and Jean Berkey’s residence, where Jean hesitantly allows him to stay. Jean confides that she is pregnant and suggests Llewyn might be the father. The following morning, Llewyn inadvertently lets the Gorfeins’ cat loose once more. Jean asks him to fund an abortion but expresses uncertainty whether Jim or Llewyn is the father.

Seeking financial help, Llewyn visits his sister who offers him a box of his belongings to dispose of and advises him to consider returning to work with the Merchant Marine. Invited by Jim, Llewyn participates in recording a novelty song themed around space travel with Jim and Al Cody; he accepts $200 upfront instead of royalties. When attempting to arrange payment for an abortion, Llewyn discovers he previously paid for a similar procedure two years earlier for another woman who kept their child without informing him.

That night, Llewyn returns what he believes is the Gorfeins’ cat. After performing "Fare Thee Well," a traditional song he originally recorded with his late partner Mike Timlin, tensions escalate when Mrs. Gorfein joins in singing Mike's harmony part. She soon returns with the cat, realizing it is not theirs. Llewyn departs carrying the feline.

Llewyn travels toward Chicago accompanied by beat poet Johnny Five and jazz musician Roland Turner. He reveals that Mike died by suicide. At a roadside diner, Roland overdoses on heroin. When law enforcement orders them to leave, Johnny resists arrest and is taken into custody. Unable to retrieve their car keys, Llewyn abandons both the vehicle and unconscious Roland along with the cat.

In Chicago, Llewyn auditions for Bud Grossman who deems him unsuitable as a solo performer but offers membership in a trio instead; Llewyn refuses and hitchhikes back to New York. While driving someone else’s car during his return trip, he accidentally strikes a ginger cat that limps into nearby woods.

Back in New York City, Llewyn spends his remaining $148 on union dues intending to rejoin the Merchant Marine but cannot afford the $85 fee required to replace his lost seaman's license. Jean informs him she has secured a performance slot at The Gaslight.

At The Gaslight Café, Llewyn learns that manager Pappi also had an affair with Jean. After drunkenly heckling another performer, Llewyn is ejected from the venue. Returning to visit the Gorfeins once more, he discovers that their novelty song might become a hit generating significant royalties and that their cat Ulysses has come back home.

The film’s opening sequence reappears as a flashforward: Llewyn performs at The Gaslight where Pappi mocks him for earlier heckling and signals an associate waiting outside. Behind the club, Llewyn is assaulted by the suited man for harshly heckling his wife before watching him leave in a taxi bidding "Au revoir."

Cast


Sources

The Coen brothers began their scriptwriting process by concentrating on a specific incident: the assault on Van Ronk outside Gerde's Folk City in Greenwich Village. This event opens the film and influenced its evolution over several years around a fictional protagonist. One principal reference was Van Ronk's memoir, The Mayor of MacDougal Street (2005).

Co-author Elijah Wald mentioned that the Coens primarily extracted "local color and a few scenes" from this memoir. The lead character is an amalgamation of Van Ronk, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, and various other folk artists from 1960s New York City. Joel Coen admitted that the film does not follow a conventional narrative, which prompted them to incorporate a cat to help sustain audience engagement.


Production

Filming faced challenges due to an unseasonably warm early spring in New York, which conflicted with the film’s intended somber winter setting, alongside the inherent difficulty of working with cats, who unlike dogs, do not respond to commands. Taking advice from an animal trainer, the Coens employed several orange tabby cats—common enough to allow multiple cats to share one role—choosing specific cats for scenes based on their natural tendencies. A fortuitous encounter with a taxi driver residing at their former apartment led the Coens to reuse a residence they had rented many years prior.

Producer Scott Rudin, who had previously worked with the Coens on No Country for Old Men and True Grit, came aboard for this film. Financing was secured through StudioCanal before an American distributor was found. In a January 2013 interview with New York Times, Joel Coen revealed that after shooting in New York City and other locations, they completed post-production at their own pace rather than rushing to meet Oscar season deadlines. On February 19, CBS Films purchased U.S. distribution rights for approximately $4 million, while StudioCanal retained international distribution and foreign sales responsibilities.


Music

The Coens’ script drew heavy inspiration from Dave Van Ronk’s music, initially selecting many songs from his catalog. Van Ronk’s biographer Elijah Wald observed that although Llewyn Davis is not a direct portrayal of Van Ronk, the soundtrack remains closely associated with him. The cover art for Davis’s solo album, Inside Llewyn Davis, mirrors Van Ronk’s Inside Dave Van Ronk, both depicting the musician standing in a doorway wearing a tweed jacket and smoking.

Additional tracks were developed through collaboration between the Coens and producer T Bone Burnett, who worked alongside Marcus Mumford on the soundtrack. Burnett had previously partnered with the Coens on The Big Lebowski and O Brother, Where Art Thou?, the latter achieving sales near 8 million copies in the U.S. The Coens regarded the music in Inside Llewyn Davis as a direct successor to O Brother.

The novelty tune "Please Mr. Kennedy" traces its lineage back four generations to the 1960 song "Mr. Custer," evolving through versions tied to Vietnam War draft themes and folk adaptations. The credits for this rendition include Ed Rush, George Cromarty, Burnett, Timberlake, and the Coens.

Performances by Isaac, Timberlake, Mulligan, Driver, and others were recorded live during filming, except for "The Auld Triangle", which involved lip-syncing with Timberlake providing bass vocals. Timberlake's vocal range was notably impressive; critic Janet Maslin once confused his voice with Mulligan’s on the soundtrack.

Release

Inside Llewyn Davis had its global debut on May 19 at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. It later appeared at several other festivals, including the New York Film Festival in September, the AFI Film Festival in November, and the Torino Film Festival.

The movie was initially released on a limited basis in the United States on December 6, 2013, in Los Angeles and New York. It then expanded to 133 theaters by December 20 and received a wide release beginning January 10, 2014.

On January 19, 2016, The Criterion Collection issued the film on DVD and Blu-ray formats, featuring new audio commentary, interviews, and a 43-minute documentary titled Inside "Inside Llewyn Davis".

Critical response

Rotten Tomatoes reports a 92% approval rating from 295 reviews, with an average score of 8.5/10, describing the film as "Smart, funny, and profoundly melancholy." On Metacritic, it holds a score of 93 out of 100 based on 52 critic reviews, signifying "universal acclaim."

Reviewers commended Oscar Isaac’s portrayal and the film’s depiction of the early 1960s folk music scene. A. O. Scott characterized it as a "brilliant magpie's nest," blending surreal elements with period authenticity while exploring themes of human folly. Alan Scherstuhl regarded it as the Coen brothers’ most emotionally resonant work since A Serious Man, and Todd McCarthy praised its "fresh, resonant folk soundtrack" alongside Isaac’s captivating lead performance. IGN awarded the film a perfect rating, naming it among the Coens’ finest creations.

Some folk artists expressed reservations about the film’s representation of the Village folk scene, suggesting it appeared less welcoming than reality. Suzanne Vega, Dave Van Ronk’s former wife and fellow singer, noted that the film’s somber tone contrasted with the lively community spirit of that time. The Coen brothers clarified that Llewyn Davis is an original character inspired by Van Ronk’s music rather than his personal life.

The film has received notable acclaim in various critical rankings: in a 2016 BBC poll, it was voted the 11th greatest film of the 21st century and achieved a similar position on The New York Times' Best Films of the 21st Century list. In February 2025, The Washington Post ranked it eighth among "The 25 best movie musicals of the 21st century," highlighting T-Bone Burnett’s authentic musical direction and Oscar Isaac’s performance. By mid-2025, it secured number 83 on The New York Times list of "The 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century" and number 18 on Rolling Stone’s comparable ranking.

External links

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