6:40 AM
ArtsNFashion
Cast: Oscar
Isaac, John Goodman, Carey Mulligan, Justin Timberlake, Garrett Hedlund, Adam
Driver, Max Casella, F. Murray Abraham
By James Colt Harrison
Brothers Joel & Ethan Coen have always made
unusual and interesting films (O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Fargo, True Grit
), both writing and directing them in tandem. As such, they have built up a
cult of followers who hang on every piece of film the boys produce. That’s how
their film The Big Lebowski has
become a cult film with annual showings at colleges around the country. In this
reviewer’s college days it was Casablanca that got the cult
admiration, decades after its initial release. Times change as do tastes. It’s
not certain the Coen’s latest effort will achieve that exalted status of
cultism, but it will probably draw huge crowds of folk music fans.
The film follows a bleak week in the life of
aspiring musician Davis, played laconically by the Italianate-attractive Oscar
Isaac, (although of Guatemalan-Cuban descent) a somewhat unknown actor at this
point. After graduating from Juilliard School in 2005, he made several appearances
in films, one of which was The Bourne Legacy.
It is hard to reason why the film won the Grand
Prix award at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival because of its somewhat downbeat
approach to the lead character’s life in New York. But despair to us is ecstasy to European film
critics, and there you have it!
Isaac plays Davis as a talented
singer-songwriter who is trying to break into the New York folk singing craze
during the early 1960s. Although not without talent, he has the annoying
tendency to make things worse for himself and to shoot himself in the foot
every time he may be getting a break in the music business. Producers such as
Bud Grossman ( F. Murray Abraham ) simply give up on him.
The film was inspired by the life of the
real-life folksinger Dave Van Ronk, (The Mayor of MacDougal Street) a performer
who had some local success in the Greenwich Village scene. Davis makes it hard
for us to root for him as he struggles to find a gig because basically he is
not a likeable character. Not horrible, but not very cuddly. In addition to his
career woes, former romance-for-a-night Jean (Carey Mulligan) is shrill and a
shrew who won’t forgive him for getting her in a motherly way. As Davis said,
”It takes two to tango.” Jean is now involved with singer Justin Timberlake, a
nice guy who gets Davis work in a recording session.
Folk music fans must give credit to musical
impresario T. Bone Burnett for supervising the music and for selecting the appropriate
songs. Although we are not folk music enthusiasts, the music selected added to
the entire ambiance of the film and captured the hippie era.
Visit our website for a free subscription of the ArtsNFashion Magazine. ArtsNFashion Magazine
0 comments:
Post a Comment