An invitation received earlier today for an Inside Llewyn Davis Cannes luncheon (mum on the particulars) may indicate the look of the official ad art.
With Joel and Ethan Coen‘s Inside Llewyn Davis now confirmed for the Cannes Film Festival competition slate, here’s a portion of my 3.9.12 script review:
“The Coen’s script, typically sharp and well-honed with tasty characters and tart, tough dialogue (especially from Carey Mulligan‘s character), is about lethargy, really. And about taking care of a friend’s cat. And seeing to an abortion and trying to get paid and figure out your next move and…whatever else, man. It’s about a guy who isn’t even close to getting his act together, who just shuffles around from one couch to the next, grasping at straws, doing a session recording one day and trying to land a performing gig the next, like a rolling stone, no direction home.
“It’s about how shitty it felt to be aimless and broke without a lot of passion in downtown Manhattan during the first year of the Kennedy administration. A line from an Amazon review of Dave Van Ronk’s co-authored autobiography notes that ‘the truth is that being a folk singer in the late 1950s wasn’t very much fun.’ That sums up Inside Llewyn Davis. It’s about a guy who ‘exists’ as a folk singer rather than one who is really struggling to be heard and living the life and half-getting somewhere.
“The period details are subtle and spot-on, and yes, Bob Dylan does make an oblique appearance at the very end (and is heard singing ‘I Was Young When I Left Home’) but Davis…? What a loser, what a deadhead.
“But I loved the script. It’s a real Coen Bros. film. When you’ve finished it you know you’ve tasted the early ’60s and that atmosphere (if I know the Coens the CG recreations of 1961 Manhattan are going to be exceptional) and that kick-around way of life, and that you’ve really become familiar with Llewyn Davis’s loser lifestyle. It’s something to bite into and remember. It has flavor and realism, but it has no story to speak of, really. Shit just happens. It’s a bit like A Serious Man, but without the theme about God’s cruelty and indifference to the plight of mortals.
“What are Joel and Ethan saying (if they were the kind of filmmakers who makes movies in order to ‘say’ something, which they’re not)? If you’re not driven or talented enough, don’t try to become a performer because life will take you down if you don’t have that spark? Something like that.”
If you ask me the coolest-sounding competitors in the official 2013 Cannes Film Festival slate, announced in Paris five or six hours ago, are Alexander Payne‘s Nebraska, Joel and Ethan Coen’s Inside Llewyn Davis, Takashi Miike‘s Wara No Tate, Steven Soderbergh‘s Behind The Candelabra — the latter a surprise inclusion in the competition slate — and Roman Polanski‘s Venus in Fur.
I’m also especially keen to see four out-of-competition titles — Guillame Canet‘s Blood Ties, James Toback’s Seduced and Abandoned, Stephen Frears’ Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight and J.C. Chandor‘s All Is Lost (Robert Redford doing a variation on Spencer Tracy in The Old Man and The Sea?). And Sofia Coppola‘s The Bling Ring, of course, which will kick off Un Certain Regard.
I’m taking credit for being the only person predicting that Toback’s doc would be part of this festival in some capacity (which I posted on 4.6). I’m not aware that anyone else in the entire world even toyed with this possibility. Full disclosure: Toback told me his film was in but that I couldn’t mention it until the official announcement so I “predicted” instead.
I’m not that interested in Nicolas Winding Refn’s Only God Forgives, a competition selection, as early footage indicates an extremely fetishy ultra-violent tribute to Asian action-machismo, and as such will quite possibly feature swollen eyes, litres of spilt blood, swords, disembowelings, slicings, possible finger-and-toe choppings and you name it. I’m not trying to be a kneejerk contrarian but Ryan Gosling‘s pecs stained with dried blood and perhaps a speck or two of brain matter…later.
I was going to stay up until 2 or 3 am to file a Johnny-on-the-spot piece but eff that. I willfully screw up my sleep schedule for no man and no festival.
Payne’s Nebraska being part of the competition slate puts a nice juicy strawberry on top of the short cake and whipped cream — just what I needed and wanted.
Yesterday’s bogus leak slate was imagined, yes, but it wasn’t too far off the mark either — substitute a competition title or two and the only discredited predictions are Jim Jarmusch‘s Only Lovers Left Alive, Luc Besson‘s Malavita, David Gordon Green‘s Joe and one or two others. It’s significant that it forecasted Nebraska, I think, when certain handicappers (such as Deadline‘s Nancy Tartaglione) were predicting that Payne’s film would more likely play Telluride/Toronto.
I’m still trying to understand why James Gray‘s The Immigrant had been referred to in some quarters as The Lowlife. Was the more intriguing-sounding The Lowlife the initial choice or vice versa? Update: What does it matter? The point is that when a title switches around a lot it tends to mean something.
We all knew that Asghar Farhadi‘s Le Passe would be among the competition films but it’s good to have this confirmed.
I have to start boning up on the two Polanski films that will be shown during the fest — Venus in Fur and a special showing of Weekend of a Champion. I don’t know squat about either of them when you get right down to it.
My “Dream Cannes” picks would have include Paul Greengrass‘s Captain Phillips (why not?), Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years A Slave, Jason Reitman‘s Labor Day (which was test screened two or three months ago), Spike Lee‘s Oldboy and one of the two Terrence Malick films (Knight of Cups and the other one) that are still in editing and will probably remain there for another several months if not a year-plus.
Nobody in the U.S. press ensemble will express much enthusiasm much about Baz Luhrman‘s The Great Gatsby as it will have opened commercially in the U.S. on 5.10. The period drama will open the festival.
This will not be taken as surprising by anyone in the know, but a European distribution guy told me the following this morning: “Not that it matters much only one day before the official announcement, but I’ve got confirmation from [a 100% reliable source] that Inside Llewyn Davis, the new Coen brothers film, and Only God Forgives, the allegedly ultra-violent Nicholas Winding Refn-Ryan Gosling filme, will indeed play in competition in Cannes. Inside Llewyn Davis will apparently screen on the first weekend, and Only God Forgives on the second Wednesday.
None of the 2013 Cannes Film Festival prediction pieces have even toyed with the possibility of James Toback and Alec Baldwin‘s Seduced and Abandoned, a documentary about the film business and financing in particular, being one of the attractions. Shot during last year’s festival and featuring encounters with numerous industry hotshots, the now-completed film sounds to me like a semi-likely inclusion. Perhaps in some kind out-of-competition slot or under Director’s Fortnight or Un Certain Regard.
James Toback, Alec Baldwin.
“The movie business is the worst girlfriend in the world,” Baldwin said in Simon Dang‘s 5.31.12 Indiewire article about the film. “You go back again and again and again. You go back with another chance to do something that you want to do in moviemaking or moviegoing. You are seduced and abandoned over and over again.”
I’ve been hearing this and that person say “I obviously don’t know anything but this is starting to feel like a bit of a weak festival.” The only way to shake that feeling would be to bring in a major fall awards contender, and that would be Alexander Payne‘s Nebraska…right? Remember that No Country For Old Men vibe when Joel and Ethan Coen‘s film debuted at Cannes six years ago? That “whoa, stand back” feeling? That’s what we need to lift things up this year.
I’ve already indicated a general lack of enthusiasm for Nicholas Winding Refn and Ryan Gosling‘s Only God Forgives, which is looking like a likely inclusion. I’ve written so much about Joel and Ethan’s Inside Llewyn Davis (including a March 2012 script review) that it almost feels like I’ve seen it.
Steven Soderbergh‘s Behind the Candelabra is said to be likely. Ditto Sofia Coppola‘s The Bling Ring and Asghar Farhadi‘s The Past.
I wouldn’t mind catching JC Chandor‘s All is Lost, the Robert Redford survivalist drama. Oliver Hirschbiegel‘s Diana would be welcome. Ditto Jonathan Glazer‘s Under the Skin, Guillaume Canet‘s Blood Ties and Jim Jarmusch‘s Only Lovers Left Alive.
I was really hoping for Alfonso Cuaron‘s 3D Gravity but that won’t be completed until sometime this summer, I’m told by a top-dog source. Yes, even though it test-screened early last November at the Sherman Oaks Arclight.
I would be down with Ryan Coogler‘s Fruitvale (which I still haven’t seen), Spike Jonze‘s Her, James Gray‘s Lowlife, Luc Besson‘s Malavita and/or Roman Polanski‘s Venus in Fur.
My “Dream Cannes” picks include Paul Greengrass‘s Captain Phillips (wny not?), Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years A Slave, Jason Reitman‘s Labor Day (which was test screened two or three months ago), and Spike Lee‘s Oldboy.
Nobody in the U.S. press pack will express great enthusiasm much about Baz Luhrman‘s The Great Gatsby as it will have opened commercially in th U.S. five days earlier. The period drama will open the festival.
The 2013 Cannes film festival runs from 5.15 through 5.26.
Four days ago The Hollywood Reporter‘s Gregg Kilday posted nine films likely to be Best Picture contenders. I posted the same and then some on January 7th — John Wells‘ August: Osage County, Bennett Miller‘s Foxcatcher, Alexander Payne‘s Nebraska, George Clooney‘s Monuments Men, Ryan Coogler‘s Fruitvale, Paul Greengrass‘s Captain Phillips, John Lee Hancock‘s Saving Mr. Banks, Martin Scorsese‘s Wolf of Wall Street and the Coen brothers‘ Inside Llewyn Davis.
To Kilday’s I would add Jason Reitman‘s Labor Day, Alfonso Cuaron‘s Gravity, Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years A Slave, Richard Linklater‘s Before Midnight (a major Sundance 2013 highlight and an all-but-guaranteed Oscar contender for Best Original Screenplay) and David O. Russell‘s Abscam movie (which starts filming around March 1st, although a voice is telling me it probably won’t be completed in time for release in November or December). Plus, just possibly, Peter Landesman‘s Parkland. Plus one or two or three wild cards that will presumably pop through and cause excitement at the 2013 Cannes or Telluride/Toronto festivals.
Anyway, I’ve read Inside Llewyn Davis (which is very low-key and art-filmy without much of a “narrative” that turns or delivers a payoff in the usual sense) and Parkland (which is very well written but is totally “execution dependent”), but I’d like to read the others. If anyone with relatively recent PDF scripts for the above 14 or 15 films, please send along & thanks.
I’ve run variations of this most eagerly waited films of 2013 list a couple of times since December. The count is now at 58, although I’ve deleted some titles and added four or five. But things evolve and clarify as time moves along so it can’t hurt to go over it once more. As usual, please point out any mistakes or anything I’ve missed.
(l. to r.) Bruce Dern, Will Forte, Alexander Payne during filming of Nebraska.
I understand that it’s my lot in life to mostly suffer through the winter and spring, nibbing whatever morsels I can find, and then succumb to numbing fatigue and occasional nausea during the May-July blockbuster season and then, finally — finally! — get a little satisfaction come early September and some serious nutritional soul food in late October, November and December.
It’ll never happen, but I wish the quality stuff could be spread out a bit more. A very small portion of these films will open in the spring and summer and two or three might not come out until 2014 (especially those directed by Terrence Wackadoodle), but if the vast majority are in fact going to open in 2013, the accepted industry practice of only releasing the goodies only between Labor Day and Christmas means that something close to 45 or 50 will have to open within a four-month window, or roughly 12 per month or three per week.
That’s a lot to absorb and process, and that’s not even counting the crap popcorn stuff. So we’ll all be looking at a very full fall-holiday season, and the game will begin six and half months from now. Get some rest.
(1) John Wells‘ August: Osage County.
(2) Alexander Payne‘s Nebraska.
(3) Alfonso Cuaron‘s Gravity;
(4) George Clooney‘s Monuments Men (a.k.a., cousin of The Train).
(5) Paul Greengrass‘s Captain Phillips.
(6) Martin Scorsese‘s Wolf of Wall Street.
(7) Jason Reitman‘s Labor Day.
(8) Joel and Ethan Coen‘s Inside Llewyn Davis.
(9) Bennett Miller‘s Foxcatcher.
(10) John Lee Hancock‘s Saving Mr. Banks.
(11) Ridley Scott‘s The Counselor.
(12) Spike Lee‘s Oldboy.
(13) Luc Besson‘sMalavita.
(14) Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years A Slave.
(15) Baz Luhrman‘s The Great Gatsby (which might have issues).
(16) Spike Jonze‘s Her.
(17) Anton Corbijn‘s A Most Wanted Man, based on a John le Carre novel and costarring Willem Dafoe, Rachel McAdams, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright.
(18 & 19): Terrence Malick‘s two ventures — the Austin-based film formerly known as Lawless (who knows what it’s called now?) plus the relationship vehicle Knight of Cups with Christian Bale and Natalie Portman. It could be that neither will be released until 2014 or 2015. You know Malick. (2)
(20) Wes Anderson‘s The Grand Budapest Hotel. Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Tilda Swinton and Jeff Goldblum, Willem Dafoe, F. Murray Abraham, Jude Law, Adrien Brody, Edward Norton, Harvey Keitel, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Mathieu Amalric, Owen Wilson.
(l. to r.) Meryl Streep, Ewan McGregor, Julia Roberts during filming of August: Osage County.
(21) James Gray‘s Nightingale, a New York-based period drama w/ Jeremy Renner, Marion Cotillard and Joaquin Phoenix.
(22) Guillame Canet‘s Blood Ties, a 1970s cops-and-criminals drama w/ Marion Cotillard, Clive Owen, Billy Crudup, Mila Kunis, Zoe Saldana, James Caan, Noah Emmerich.
(23) David O. Russell‘s Abscam movie (once known as American Bullshit — starts shooting in March so might not be ready this year…who knows?
(24) Noah Baumbach‘s Frances Ha (seen & praised at Telluride 2012 — definitely worth its weight).
(25) Richard Linklater‘s Before Midnight (a major Sundance 2013 highlight and an all-but-guaranteed Oscar contender for Best Original Screenplay).
(26) Stephen Frears‘ Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight.
(27) Sofia Coppola‘s The Bling Ring.
(28) Lars von Trier‘s Nymphomaniac.
(29) Wong Kar Wai‘s The Grandmaster — I don’t want to know from this film as all Asian combat/martial-arts films will be instantly ignored in this corner from now until the day I die. I will not go there under penalty of death, fines and imprisonment.
(30) Pedro Almodovar‘s I’m So Excited (all things Pedro!),
(31) Joe Swanberg‘s Drinking Buddies (Anna Kendrick, Olivia Wilde, Jake Johnson).
(32) Jean-Pierre Jeunet‘s The Young and Prodigious Spivet (Judy Davis, Helena Bonham Carter, etc.).
(33) Peter Landesman‘s Parkland.
(34) Diablo Cody‘s untitled film (which was called Lamb of God when I read the script last year).
(35) Brian Helgeland‘s 42 (Jackie Robinson biopic w/ Chadwick Boseman and Harrison Ford).
(36) Oliver Hirschbiegel‘s Diana (Princess of Wales biopic/love affair with Naomi Watts).
(37) Asghar Farhadi‘s The Past.
(38) John Michael McDonagh‘s Calvary.
(39) Paolo Sorrentino‘s La Grande Bellezza.
(40) Hossein Amini‘s The Two Faces of January.
(41) Francois Ozon‘s Jeune at Jolie (an apparent riff on Luis Bunuel‘s Belle du Jour).
(42) Terry Gilliam‘s The Zero Theorem.
(43) Woody Allen‘s Blue Jasmine.
(44) Roman Polanski‘s Venus in Fur.
(45) Danny Boyle’s‘s Trance, a crime thriller w/ James McAvoy, Vincent Cassel, Rosario Dawson. (Fox Searchlight, April).
(46) John Crowley‘s Closed Circuit.
(47) Susanne Bier‘s Serena — a period reteaming of Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper.
(48) Errol Morris‘s The Unknown Known: The Life and Times of Donald Rumsfeld.
(49) Ryan Coogler‘s Fruitvale — the big hit of Sundance 2013, acquired by the Weinstein Co.
One could also include Ben Stiller‘s The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Nicholas Winding Refn‘s Only God Forgives, Ron Howard‘s Rush, David Cronenberg‘s Maps to the Stars. Neill Blomkamp‘s Elysium, Joseph Kosinski‘s Oblivion, Robert Schwentke‘s R.I.P.D., Sam Raimi‘s Oz: The Great and Powerful and Guillermo del Toro‘s Pacific Rim (9).
Ion Cinema’s Eric Lavallee has ostensibly posted a rundown of the 100 Most Anticipated Films of 2013 but I can only pull up 38 or 39 of them. I don’t want to process any more than that. I’m presuming the remaining two-thirds will show up eventually. Here are the Lavallee picks that have my attention thus far:
(1) Asghar Farhadi‘s The Past;
(2) John Michael McDonagh‘s Calvary;
(3) Paolo Sorrentino‘s La Grande Bellezza;
(4) Hossein Amini‘s The Two Faces of January;
(5) Francois Ozon‘s Jeune at Jolie (an apparent riff on Luis Bunuel‘s Belle du Jour);
(6) Terry Gilliam‘s The Zero Theorem;
(7) Woody Allen‘s Blue Jasmine;
(8) Roman Polanski‘s Venus in Fur;
(9) James Ponsoldt‘s The Spectacular Now (also on my Sundance 2013 list);
(10) Gregg Araki‘s White Bird in a Blizzard;
(11) John Crowley‘s Closed Circuit;
(12) Michael Winterbottom‘s The Look of Love (also on my Sundance 2013 slate);
(13) Susanne Bier‘s Serena — a period reteaming of Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper.
(14) Errol Morris‘s The Unknown Known: The Life and Times of Donald Rumsfeld.
Previously: Wes Anderson‘s The Grand Budapest Hotel, David O. Russell‘s Abscam project (a.k.a. American Bullshit — starts shooting in March so might not be ready this year…who knows?); Steven Soderbergh‘s Side Effects (which I saw and liked on Monday night, 1.7), Noah Baumbach‘s Frances Ha, Richard Linklater‘s Before Midnight (also a Sundance 2013 highlight), Stephen Frears‘ Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight, Sofia Coppola‘s The Bling Ring, Lars von Trier‘s Nymphomaniac, Wong Kar Wai‘s The Grandmaster, Pedro Almodovar‘s I’m So Excited (all things Pedro!), Joe Swanberg‘s Drinking Buddies (Anna Kendrick, Olivia Wilde, Jake Johnson) and Jean-Pierre Jeunet‘s The Young and Prodigious Spivet (Judy Davis, Helena Bonham Carter, etc.). (12)
Plus (1) Peter Landesman‘s Parkland, Diablo Cody‘s untitled film (which was called Lamb of God when I read the script last year), (3) Brian Helgeland‘s 42 (Jackie Robinson biopic w/ Chadwick Boseman and Harrison Ford); and (4) Oliver Hirschbiegel‘s Diana (Princess of Wales biopic/love affair with Naomi Watts). (4)
The 17 biggies I listed on 12.16 are as follows:
(1) John Wells‘ August: Osage County;
(2) Alexander Payne‘s Nebraska;
(3) Alfonso Cuaron‘s Gravity;
(4) George Clooney‘s Monuments Men (a.k.a., cousin of The Train);
(5) Paul Greengrass‘s Captain Phillips;
(6) Martin Scorsese‘s Wolf of Wall Street;
(7) Jason Reitman‘s Labor Day;
(8) Joel and Ethan Coen‘s Inside Llewyn Davis;
(9) Bennett Miller‘s Foxcatcher;
(10) John Lee Hancock‘s Saving Mr. Banks;
(11) Ridley Scott‘s The Counselor;
(12) Spike Lee‘s Oldboy;
(13) Luc Besson‘s Malavita;
(14) Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years A Slave;
(15) Baz Luhrman‘s The Great Gatsby (which might have issues);
(16) Spike Jonze‘s Her.
(17) Anton Corbijn‘s A Most Wanted Man, based on a John le Carres novel and costarring Willem Dafoe, Rachel McAdams, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright.
Also: Terrence Malick‘s two ventures — the film formerly known as Lawless plus Knight of Cups (neither of which might not be released until 2014 or 2015…you know Malick). (2)
One could also include Ben Stiller‘s The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Nicholas Winding Refn‘s Only God Forgives, Ron Howard‘s Rush, David Cronenberg‘s Maps to the Stars. Neill Blomkamp‘s Elysium, Joseph Kosinski‘s Oblivion, Robert Schwentke‘s R.I.P.D., Sam Raimi‘s Oz: The Great and Powerful and Guillermo del Toro‘s Pacific Rim (9).
After scanning Brad Brevet‘s “50 Most Anticipated 2013 Films” piece on Rope of Silicon, I’m adding 15 or 16 films to a previously posted rundown of 29 likely 2013 award contenders, must-sees and perk-ups. Not one is a low-rent superhero comic-book CG monster-action popcorn movie…not one. A few visionary fantasies aimed at Joe Popcorn, okay, but made by high-end directors.
Four are from Brevet’s initial list: (1) Peter Landesman‘s Parkland, Diablo Cody‘s untitled film (which was called Lamb of God when I read the script last year), (3) Brian Helgeland‘s 42 (Jackie Robinson biopic w/ Chadwick Boseman and Harrison Ford); and (4) Oliver Hirschbiegel‘s Diana (Princess of Wales biopic/love affair with Naomi Watts). (4)
I’m also adding Wes Anderson‘s The Grand Budapest Hotel, David O. Russell‘s Abscam project (a.k.a. American Bullshit — starts shooting in March so might not be ready this year…who knows?); Steven Soderbergh‘s Side Effects (which — update — I saw and liked on Monday night, 1.7), Noah Baumbach‘s Frances Ha, Richard Linklater‘s Before Midnight, Stephen Frears‘ Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight, Sofia Coppola‘s The Bling Ring, Lars von Trier‘s Nymphomaniac, Wong Kar Wai‘s The Grandmaster (which I’m almost certainly going to hate), Pedro Almodovar‘s I’m So Excited (all things Pedro!), Joe Swanberg‘s Drinking Buddies (Anna Kendrick, Olivia Wilde, Jake Johnson) and Jean-Pierre Jeunet‘s The Young and Prodigious Spivet (Judy Davis, Helena Bonham Carter). (12)
The 16 biggies I listed on 12.16 are as follows:
(1) John Wells‘ August: Osage County;
(2) Alexander Payne‘s Nebraska;
(3) Alfonso Cuaron‘s Gravity;
(4) George Clooney‘s Monuments Men (a.k.a., cousin of The Train);
(5) Paul Greengrass‘s Captain Phillips;
(6) Martin Scorsese‘s Wolf of Wall Street;
(7) Jason Reitman‘s Labor Day;
(8) Joel and Ethan Coen‘s Inside Llewyn Davis;
(9) Bennett Miller‘s Foxcatcher;
(10) John Lee Hancock‘s Saving Mr. Banks;
(11) Ridley Scott‘s The Counselor;
(12) Spike Lee‘s Oldboy;
(13) Luc Besson‘s Malavita;
(14) Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years A Slave;
(15) Baz Luhrman‘s The Great Gatsby (which might have issues);
(16) Spike Jonze‘s Her.
Also: Terrence Malick‘s two ventures — the film formerly known as Lawless plus Knight of Cups (neither of which might not be released until 2014 or 2015…you know Malick). (2)
One could also include Ben Stiller‘s The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Nicholas Winding Refn‘s Only God Forgives, Ron Howard‘s Rush, David Cronenberg‘s Maps to the Stars. Neill Blomkamp‘s Elysium, Joseph Kosinski‘s Oblivion, Robert Schwentke‘s R.I.P.D., Steven Spielberg‘s Robopocalypse, Sam Raimi‘s Oz: The Great and Powerful abd Guillermo del Toro‘s Pacific Rim (10).
Last March I explained two things. One, that I’d read the script for Joel and Ethan Coen‘s Inside Llewyn Davis. And two, that Oscar Isaacs’ titular character in this matter-of-fact dramedy set against the backdrop of the early ’60s folk scene in Greenwich Village “bears no resemblance whatsover to the ’60s cafe folk-singer Dave Van Ronk,” or at least the Van Ronk I’ve read about over the years.
And yet today (12.18) Showbiz 411‘s Roger Friedman described Isaac “as a stand-in for real life folk musician Dave van Ronk”…Jesus!
Look, maybe there were two Dave van Ronks back in the early ’60s. One was this large, hulking troubadour guy who knew everyone, who organized West Village musicians so they wouldn’t be exploited by cafe owners and who “was heavily committed to folk music, to the musician community, to his troubadour way of life and to everything that was starting to happen in the early ’60s…if nothing else a man who lived large.” And the other Van Ronk was this smallish, morose, Latin-looking guy (like Isaacs) who lived and thought small, and was no spiritual match for the hulking Van Ronk…a guy who was glum and vaguely pissed off and resentful, and tried to make it as a folk musician but wasn’t much of a go-getter and who slept on a lot of couches. And the Coens sat down and said to each other, “You know what? Fuck the real Dave van Ronk…let’s make a film about his doppelganger.”
Friedman was writing about a recent friends-and-coworkers screening of Inside Llewyn Davis in Manhattan. His source tells him that Carey Mulligan‘s character is “romantically linked” to Isaac’s — not true. She’s pregnant by him and needs to get an abortion, but in no way are they romantically linked, at least not on the page. Mulligan’s character can’t stand Isaacs’ character. Nothing but bile and bitterness.
Friedman writes that “the film got raves from those who saw it, but it’s also said to be unlike most Coen brothers movies — no violence, no sex, no weird irony.” That sounds like the script I read. Very plain and low-key and untricky.
One viewer tells Friedman that Inside Llewyn Davis “made me cry”….bullshit. The Coen brothers have never made films that anyone has wept over, and they never will. They make cinematic, camera-rich movies with feisty performances and sardonic undertones that you can smirk or chuckle at if you want…but forget weeping or sniffling. Not in their wheelhouse.
Inside Llewyn Davis could possibly travel to Cannes five months hence, Friedman writes…and if you ask me it probably will.
As far as I can foresee we’re looking at 16 possible Oscar-calibre films due in 2013. I can predict one thing for sure: between his lead roles in Saving Mr. Banks and Captain Phillips Tom Hanks is looking at an almost certain Best Actor nomination. The only other guarantee is that Lee Daniels’ The Butler will be a fiasco, but you knew assumed that going in.
In the order of likely quality, the probable picks of 2013:
(1) John Wells‘ August: Osage County;
(2) Alexander Payne‘s Nebraska;
(3) Alfonso Cuaron‘s Gravity;
(4) George Clooney‘s Monuments Men (a.k.a., cousin of The Train);
(5) Paul Greengrass‘s Captain Phillips;
(6) Martin Scorsese‘s Wolf of Wall Street;
(7) Jason Reitman‘s Labor Day;
(8) Joel and Ethan Coen‘s Inside Llewyn Davis;
(9) Bennett Miller‘s Foxcatcher;
(10) John Lee Hancock‘s Saving Mr. Banks;
(11) Ridley Scott‘s The Counselor;
(12) Spike Jonze‘s Her;
(13) Spike Lee‘s Oldboy;
(14) Luc Besson‘s Malavita;
(15) Steve McQueen‘s 12 Years A Slave;
(16) Baz Luhrman‘s The Great Gatsby (which might have issues).
If you want to be liberal about it there is also Terrence Malick‘s two ventures — the film formerly known as Lawless plus Knight of Cups (neither of which might not be released until 2014 or 2015…you know Malick).
One could also include Ben Stiller‘s The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Nicholas Winding Refn‘s Only God Forgives, Ron Howard‘s Rush and David Cronenberg‘s Maps to the Stars. (Thanks to HE readers bfm and Jeremy Baril.)
Not to mention Neill Blomkamp‘s Elysium, Joseph Kosinski‘s Oblivion, Robert Schwentke‘s R.I.P.D., Steven Spielberg‘s Robopocalypse, Sam Raimi‘s Oz: The Great and Powerful, Ruben Fleischer‘s The Gangster Squad, Guillermo del Toro‘s Pacific Rim and David Fincher‘s 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea: Captain Nemo.
The almost-worthless IMDB says it’ll open limited in December 2012. Wikipedia has been reporting for months that Paramount is the distributor, which means nothing. But it does seem as if Llewyn Davis will come out later this year…good.
Forget what I wrote about the Llewyn Davis script earlier this year at your peril.
- All Hail Tom White, Taciturn Hero of “Killers of the Flower Moon”
Roughly two months ago a very early draft of Eric Roth‘s screenplay for Killers of the Flower Moon (dated 2.20.17,...
More » - Dead-End Insanity of “Nomadland”
Frances McDormand‘s Fern was strong but mule-stubborn and at the end of the day self-destructive, and this stunted psychology led...
More » - Mia Farrow’s Best Performances?
Can’t decide which performance is better, although I’ve always leaned toward Tina Vitale, her cynical New Jersey moll behind the...
More »
- Hedren’s 94th
Two days ago (1.19) a Facebook tribute congratulated Tippi Hedren for having reached her 94th year (blow out the candles!)...
More » - Criminal Protagonists
A friend suggested a list of the Ten Best American Crime Flicks of the ‘70s. By which he meant films...
More » - “‘Moby-Dick’ on Horseback”
I’ve never been able to give myself over to Sam Peckinpah’s Major Dundee, a 1965 Civil War–era western, and I’ve...
More »