Inside Llewyn Davis

This engaging comedy-drama is a lovingly created trip down memory lane, with Oscar Isaac in the titular role as a struggling folksinger in New York’s Greenwich Village during the early sixties. Not only did Isaac sing and play all the songs himself, but T Bone Burnett served as the film’s musical producer and Carey Mulligan and Justin Timberlake co-star. Now, this multi-award winning gem has just been released on 4K UHD & Blu-ray format as a 3-disc Collector’s Edition.

As Oscar Isaac explained about his role (it was in fact his breakthrough role), Llewyn Davis tends to be a charming, humorous and witty individual with a huge passion for folk music, just not this week… Of course, “this week” refers to the week in which the story takes place, starting on a bitterly cold February night in 1961 in New York’s Greenwich Village, then a hotspot for emerging folk music talent (including a very young Bob Dylan). Despite his obvious talent and a penchant for penning clever lyrics, Llewyn’s solo album ‘Inside Llewyn Davis’ doesn’t shift any copies and as a result, he’s skint and relies on the kindness of various friends who offer him a couch to sleep on.

One night, after having played a few tunes at the legendary Gaslight Café (it opened in 1958 and closed for good in 1971), Pappi Corsicato (Max Casella), manager of the Gaslight, informs Llewyn that a friend of his wearing a suit is waiting for him outside. Baffled as to who it might be, a stranger lurks in a dark corner and then beats up the perplexed folksinger. As we find out much later, this opening sequence is in fact the film’s ending though we won’t give away who and why Llewyn has been beaten up by a stranger…

The story then continues in the present, with Llewyn waking up in the apartment of Lilian and Mitch Gorfein (Robin Bartlett and Ethan Phillips respectively), two good friends who provide him with a makeshift bed whenever he needs shelter and warmth. Just as Llewyn is leaving the apartment, the Gorfeins ginger cat runs out and with the door locked behind him and both his hosts out and about, he has no other option than to take the troublesome feline with him. As we find out throughout the film, Llewyn is pretty hopeless when it comes to keeping an eye on cats, though it’s usually due to unfortunate circumstances rather than his ineptitude. Next port of call is the apartment of two other friends, Jim and Jean Berkey (Justin Timberlake and Carey Mulligan). Llewyn hopes that once again, he’ll be offered a place to crash out for the night. And the Gorfeins’ ginger puss, too.

While Jim is pretty welcoming, Jean makes it crystal clear that she’s not exactly happy to see Llewyn, let alone offer him a place to sleep. There’s a reason though, because not only did Jean and Llewyn have an affair at some point (with Jim unaware of it), but now she’s pregnant and isn’t quite sure whether the baby is Jim’s or Llewyn’s. As we find out, Llewyn is no stranger to such situations, while Jean - despite loving Jim - still seems to believe in the concept of free love. During a stroll in the park, Jean once again emphasises how angry she is with Llewyn, because actually, she doesn’t mind having a baby if only she could be sure that it’s Jim’s. But since she can’t be sure, she despises Llewyn even more, on top of her resentment for him, seeing how everything he touches turns to s**t according to her. Returning to the apartment and contemplating the overall situation, including arranging for an abortion, the Gorfein cat escapes again, this time through an open window.

Following further trials and tribulations, including a visit to his sister Joy (Jeanine Serralles), with whom he has a strained relation and who suggests that he could earn a crust by returning to his old job at the Merchant Marine, there are some highlights, including a recording session with Jim and and Al Cody (Adam Driver), during which the trio record a novelty song with a space-travel theme. Another pleasant surprise is that upon visiting the abortion clinic, he’s informed he doesn’t need to cough up the $200 for Jean’s abortion because after he had paid the same amount two years prior for another partner’s abortion, the woman in question had decided to keep the baby but no one was able to contact Llewyn to pay the money back to him.

Walking along the pavement, he spots a stray ginger cat and catches it in the belief it is the Gorfein cat. During a musical evening at the Gorfein apartment, Llewyn goes into one of his rotten moods when asked to play a song he had recorded with his late partner, Mike Timlin. It causes an argument between him and Lillian, who angrily returns the ginger cat to Llewyn stating it cannot possibly be her cat, because it isn’t even male.

Fed up with everything, Llewyn accepts a stint to play in Chicago and, together with the cat, drives with seasoned jazz musician Roland Turner (John Goodman) and beat poet Johnny Five (Garrett Hedlund) to the windy city, when along the highway, things take an unexpected turn for the worse…

Although Llewyn Davis is a fictional character, he and the film’s story were inspired by folk singer Dave Van Ronk - a permanent fixture of the Greenwich Village folk music scene. F. Murray Abraham makes a short but fine appearance as music executive and impresario Bud Grossman - in turn inspired by the real-life character of influential Chicago folk music manager Albert Grossman.

You don’t need to be familiar with New York’s 1960’s folk music scene in order to marvel at this fantastically acted film - just enjoy the ride which catapults you back to a time which brought us Dylan, Joan Baez, Simon & Garfunkel, and Peter, Paul and Mary to name but a few.

Additional Bonus material includes interviews / ‘The Design of…” docu / ‘The Music of…” docu / the 101 min documentary ‘Another Day, Another Time’ plus an exclusive poster.