Inside Llewyn Davis 

October 15 screening introduced by critic Adam Nayman, author of The Coen Brothers: This Book Really Ties the Films Together

Dir. Joel and Ethan Coen. 2013, 104 mins. DCP. With Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund, Justin Timberlake, Adam Driver, F. Murray Abraham. What would it feel like to be a failed artist in the era of Dylan, Kerouac, and Ginsberg? The Coen brothers’ acerbic yet profoundly felt character study of a singer-songwriter struggling to make it amidst the burgeoning Greenwich Village folk scene of the early 1960s is a consummate example of what the filmmakers can do at their very best: construct a vivid cinematic evocation of a historically and regionally specific place and time that feels both authentic and stylistically heightened, and create unforgettable characters who live in that world. In this case, it’s the talented yet self-destructive wanderer Llewyn Davis—played (and sung) brilliantly by Isaac in his breakthrough role—who’s unable to overcome the loss of his former creative partner and is increasingly desperate to find gigs. The period details are spot on, and the tone grows increasingly melancholy. “Loosely inspired by an actual artist, named after a fictional album, made by two artists occupationally interested in honoring and redefining forms and genres, Inside Llewyn Davis is a movie that follows characters who make and perform folk songs, and which itself effectively becomes a feature-length folk song.” —Eric Hynes, Reverse Shot

Tickets: $15 / $11 senior and students / $9 youth (ages 3–17) / discounted for MoMI members ($7–$11). Order tickets. Please pick up tickets at the Museum’s admissions desk upon arrival. All seating is general admission. Review safety protocols before your visit.