Llewyn Davis and the Value of Tragic Art

Inside Llewyn Davis is the Coen Brothers latest masterpiece which is a profile of a folk musician in Greenwich village in New York in 1961. This is one of my favorite movies of all time, and in discussing it with friends after they saw it, I have come to the conclusion that the true value of this movie not in the viewing of it, but rather in contemplating it’s meaning and discussing it with friends. I consider this movie to be a poetic masterpiece, and I would like to explain some of the ways this movie has influenced me as a film goer. Be warned, there are some spoilers ahead, so if you want to see this movie, then please watch it now, and come back here when you are done. If you are on the fence about watching this move, then I encourage you to stay because this analysis may convince you to see it.

I would like to start by explaining what I consider the ending of the movie means and how it relates to one of the prominent themes of the movie. The movies opens on Llewyn being beat up in an alley for unknown reasons. The film ends with the same scene happening again. While this confuses some people, I believe it speaks volumes to the nature of the title character. When you see the film, you will understand that the Llewyn is not a hero. He is kind of a terrible person, and the other characters in the movie understand this too. I don’t think the movie is trying to say that the same event happened twice, rather we get a flash forward at the beginning of the movie, which is a technique used by many. The opening scene of goodfellas comes to mind. The point of the flash forward is to convey the idea that Llewyn’s life is cyclical. Because as a musician and a person he refuses to change his ways, he will continue to live in a cycle of hardship, pain, and arrogance.

In season 3 of Community, Abed said the following in regards to nature of storytelling, “Will your story be yet another sad one of yet another man who just wanted to be happy? Or will your story acknowledge the very nature of stories, and embrace the fact that sharing the sad ones can sometimes make them happy?” I believe that this sentiment applies to Inside Llewyn Davis perfectly. Unanimously, everyone’s first impression of this movie is somewhat negative. They will complain that there was virtually no followable plot, and that the ending is sad. I will concede that these things are true, but these things are on purpose. This movie is poetic in that shows the faults of human nature without holding back. This is not a particularly pleasant movie to watch, however the more you think about the many messages that it is trying to send about human nature, what it means to be a artist, selling out, and a need for redemption, this movie will probably grow on you.

I have always been a lover of films that portray an honest picture of flawed human nature and a need for a savior, and no movie does this more poetically than David Fincher’s Se7en. The key difference here is while I would recommend Inside Llewyn Davis to virtually everyone, I would recommend Se7en to no one. This film take a similar tragic path as Llewyn, but this film is decidedly more violent in nature. Se7en is a gory and grisly take on human depravity that is masterfully and meticulously crafted, but I would not recommend it to anyone due to it’s gore, however the meaning is still there and should be valued nonetheless.

I am not the only one who sees value in the tragic art. German Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche believed that the greek tragic arts allowed the spectators to affirmed their own existence in a virtually meaningless world. He believed that tragedy transcends other art by allowing the viewer a glimpse into the full spectrum of the human condition. I agree. I haven’t seen more of the human condition played out in other genres of film or television, than I have in movies like the films of the Coen Brothers, Goodfellas, Breaking Bad, or even video games like The Last of Us. Ironically, those are some of my all time favorites. Does this mean I have a demented conscience, taking pleasure in the darkest tales of human error. No. I think I just appreciate a well crafted story that takes an honest look at our broken and evil human condition and our need for a savior.

My “Frozen” Review

Last week my parents and I wanted to go to the movies, but with so many good ones out right now for Christmas break and the Oscar season, no one could make up their mind. In the end, at my mother’s request (she had seen it once already)we ended up seeing Disney Animation’s newest film, Frozen and I must say, I’m glad that we did.

I liked Tangled and I really liked Wreck it Ralph, so going into this movie my expectations were relatively low ( I say relatively, because my expectations are always very high for Disney or Pixar films). I was completely blown away. This might just be Disney’s newest masterpiece. In short, Frozen is an incredibly beautiful, funny and heartwarming (see what I did there?) emotional journey that brought tears of joy and sadness and joy the likes of which only Up and Toy Story 3 has done for me before. All the while presenting a postmodern take on the classic disney princess story.

Of course, you don’t have to think that hard to enjoy Frozen. It’s funny, it’s pretty to look at, and of course the music is great. So if that sounds good to you, go see the movie right now and look no further. Otherwise, I’m going to dig a little deeper and tell you why this is not just a kid’s movie but instead something far more universal.

It’s my personal belief that the goal of all art at it’s core should be to inspire emotion in the beholder. Frozen accomplishes this in more than one way. In the first few minutes of the movie there is a song called “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” which I would challenge anyone to sit through and not shed at least one tear. Within minutes after that, Kristin Bell’s character Anna sings a duet with her soon to be prince which is a hilariously nostalgic call back to all things disney princess while also being completely different. I almost shed a tear during this song as well, but that was just because of the nostalgia. Frozen will make you feel so many emotions in the all the best ways and for that, I left the theatre satisfied.

Secondly, this revolutionary spin on the Disney princess story. While I won’t say that the whole movie is post-modern, it definitely has those elements. Disney has successfully made so many movies based on the whole “princess gets saved by a knight in shining armor” that it’s nice to see something that turns those tables completely. For example, when the central character, Anna needs to be unfrozen, the “act of true love” to save her is not a kiss from the man she loves, but rather an act of self-sacrifice which saves her sister’s life (It seems like no good art can escape the narrative of the Gospel). This movie kept me guessing the entire time, which is why I’m glad I chose not to know much about it before I saw it. What I found most interesting about the post-modern jabs at common princess story tropes, was that it is Disney itself which has singlehandedly fostered those pastiches into the western mindset. Of course I understand that most of the disney “Princess” movie are based on old source material like Hans Christian Andersen, but still, at least in film, Disney seems to have has made the same movie many times. I know that Frozen isn’t the first movie to take on a new perspective to the princess movie (Shrek, Princess and the Frog for example) but that does’t matter because Frozen does all of this so damn well that it blows everything else out of the water.

Finally, Frozen is a movie that will stand the test of time for more than one reason, and If you haven’t seen it, go and see it a soon as possible. One last plus side is that unlike other movies out right now (Ehem… Wolf of Wall St, I’m looking at you), this movie doesn’t have any language, sex, or crude humor (except one booger joke, but that was hilarious). If you’re not willing to spend the money to see this masterpiece in theaters at least once, then I hope that a little kid beats you up and steals your money to see it for himself. That’s just how good it is.