A Coen Brothers film. Therefore, a good film.

Rating: 8/10 (9 February 2014)

My partner and I, on leaving the cinema, were thinking the same thing: There are few certainties in life but you can guarantee that a Coen brothers film is not going to be a bad one. Inside Llewyn Davis is a good film. Its not the greatest Coen brothers film and might not even make the top 5 but its still a good film. The cinematography is great, the casting is great, the atmosphere is great, the usual touches of dark humor are there, the music is great. Most of the elements that make the Coen brothers the outstanding film makers of the last 25 years are there. In my opinion the only thing that is in any way weak is the plot. It just doesn't really engage you in the same way that Fargo or No country for old men does. Its a story about a talented musician who doesn't have what it takes to make money doing what he does. The film can be interpreted in many ways but for me the key point was when he was being watched by a theater manager who clearly loved what he was doing but had to tell him that he couldn't see money. Artists have to try and most don't succeed and along that journey they have to suffer poverty and the disappointment of nearest and dearest. Its nigh on impossible to hold down a job and make it as an artist. Its a big gamble and for me the film is about someone who is losing the gamble.