Inside Llewyn Davis, A Film About Artistic Integrity

Rating: 8/10 (23 December 2013)

Inside Llewyn Davis, the latest Coen Brothers film, is a melancholy, yet touching, ambling tribute to folk music and artistic integrity. The music is prominently and beautifully featured, fitting in thematically and seamlessly integrated into the action.
I thought the first half was great, with Llewyn's struggles, both professionally and personally, really pulling me in emotionally. He grinds away, doing small gigs, while refusing to sell out, believing in himself and his art. Even though most of his problems are his own doing, it's hard not to have a soft spot for the starving artist.
I did feel it was a bit rudderless in the middle, particularly during the unsuccessful trip to Chicago (though an interesting, brief intersection with the jazz and beatnik crowd perhaps?). The ending brings it home strong. The framing mechanism of the final performance carries much greater meaning when it all comes full circle, because we've seen him live through all the sadness he sings about. There's also a subtle, cruel joke tucked in (that I loved), when his final performance is followed by that of a famous folk musician, suggesting what we hope will be the improbable break-through moment, will not be.