Must be an east coast thing - as a singer/musician, I could not relate

Rating: 4/10 (27 February 2014)

The good: overall very good acting and camera work - with a little Fargo-like feel to it. The bad: the point of the movie seems to be that it is pointless. The Coen brothers have certainly succeeded in convincing me of the latter.
The film at first leads us to sympathize with our flawed protagonist (hey, we've been conditioned to like the underdog) but gradually steers us toward overcoming this mistaken instinct, not with a bang but more of a drawn-out whimper. As they say, the opposite of love is not hate, it is indifference. That is where we end up with our protagonist. Unfortunately, that's also how I also feel about this film: "meh".
John Goodman's character seemed out of place and contrived, a bit like most of the film. I expected better from the Coen brothers and it's sad to see them rewarded by most reviewers for this subpar, pointless film.
Despite other laudatory reviews, this reminds me of that fable, The Emperor Wears No Clothes.