MovieChat Forums > Inside Llewyn Davis (2014) Discussion > It was boring. Why no one* admits that?

It was boring. Why no one* admits that?

posted 10 years ago by zee944
140 replies | jump to latest

Don't get me wrong, I love the Coens. I've seen almost all of their movies and I like most of them. Even the less good ones are still 6/10 in my book. But I don't understand why this one is praised so much. High user rating and extremely high critics rating. I'd give it a 5/10.

Of course it's not bad in any sense. Coens can't do a honestly bad movie. The dialogues, the characters are O.K., good acting, nicely filmed etc., etc., I just don't know what to enjoy in this one. Little of Coen's black humour, little of funny situations, no tension, and the story is uninteresting.

"Why no one admits that?" --> this question wasn't meant for everybody. I'm sure half of the praisers are actually enjoyed it for whatever reason, but I'm also sure there's another half who didn't and acts like they did because it's the Coens and they look smarter enjoying an "art" movie.

*EDIT 2015.12.26.: English is not my first language. Incorrect word "noone" was fixed. It confused some people who didn't understand the point, and kept pointing it out for almost two years.

[–] 10 years ago

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[–] DoctorDealgood 10 years ago

Agreed, it wasn't bad but it was boring, a problem many of the recent Coen brothers films share. Their last truly good film was No Country for Old Men which was 7 years ago.

"Without getting into my job, yes I am a writer" - AlexDuran

[–] TheHuronPhish 10 years ago

As a Coens fan and someone who loves some of their more "left" films like A Serious Man, I thought it was very boring. The word pretentious is way overused and I hesitate to break it out myself, but Inside Llewyn Davis at least skirted the line of the p-word to me.

And no, I don't like folk music or care about the Greenwich Village scene. Maybe that was the problem.

[–] ossyguy 10 years ago

The P word was a theme.
There was "mania for authenticity" in the folk scene.
To make a film with such low traditional entertainment values was unusual.
If you don't like the music....
Maybe the film was a bit like Llewyn himself.
Loved by some..

Old Bee Party V Swirled

[–] strongbad-274-706634 10 years ago

I like the Coens brothers movies but this one was a snoozer for me. Can't stand folk music, that probably didn't help. I rented it & found myself FF through most of the songs.

[–] ComradeKubrick 10 years ago

First of all, it isn't a comedy, it is a drama, it doesnt need humour, yet still I thought it had lots of their trademark humour. If you didnt find the story interesting, then that's too bad, maybe not something you find intriguing. I found the story/character very interesting and I wasnt bored at all, if you were bored that's fine, but don't come here damabding everyone to share your opinion.

[–] 10 years ago

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[–] Franco67 10 years ago

This was my kind of film personally, beautiful music, moody atmosphere and pacing with some terrific performances. (I don't why Isaac didn't get an Oscar nod for this btw, did it not make the submission deadline?).

Anyway, I wouldn't class ILD as an "art" movie at all, it's a fictional biopic which, apart from the beginning and end scenes, was straight forward to follow. I suppose people who enjoy the darker more satirical Coen films might be disappointed but you don't have to be an art-snob to enjoy a slow burner if it has substance.

This was a kin to classics of the 70s, like a mix between Five Easy Pieces and Nashville.

"I want you to hold it between your knees"

[–] kenny-164 10 years ago

Franco,

I don't see it as like a seventies movie as you put it. It never seemed to figure out what it was about. What was the point of it?

Anyway, I do wonder if anyone has an answer to that, since I couldn't see it.

[–] usernumber655321 10 years ago

"It never seemed to figure out what it was about"

Let me edit that for ya; "I never seemed to figure out what it was about".

It is about a lot of things. For one, it is "about" a man dealing with the suicide of his best friend. You could also say it is "about" a musician struggling to make it in New York city. Or, it is 'about' a man coping with the imminent death of his father. Perhaps it is "about" a guy dealing with his former lover having an abortion. It is 'about' the folk music scene of Greenwich Village in the early sixties. It is 'about' a whole lotta things I won't take the time to mention here.

What is 'the point of it'? I can't thing of a single good work of art that has a specific "point". Good films are "about" humanity. Art doesn't lecture.

[–] vonseux 10 years ago

yeah it was boring

[–] afterberth 10 years ago

I agree 100%! this movie put me to sleep.