Of the movies released in 2013 that I have seen, there are so far three that I can say I loved and have either watched multiple times already or will likely watch again soon. Those three movies are World War Z, All is Lost and Inside Llewyn Davis.
I loved World War Z because it was suspenseful, action-packed, well-paced and contained a small dose of terror. I believe All is Lost, starring Robert Redford (and only Robert Redford) will go down in history as one of the best one-man films of all time and is certainly my pick for the best castaway, lost-at-sea movie. In case you didn’t know, there are only about a dozen words spoken during the entire film.
Inside Llewyn Davis, the Cohen brothers’ Grand Prix winner at the Festival de Cannes, is described generally as, “a week in the life of a young folk singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961.”
I loved it for a variety of reasons:
- The music, obviously. There was so much great folk music including an original and quirky tune, Please Mr. Kennedy, which earned a Golden Globe nomination. Fare Thee Well was also a stand out song for me because of the faceless voice in the duet, Marcus Mumford, husband of Carey Mulligan, who also stars in the movie. (Listen in the trailer below.) I also loved that the songs were played in the movie in their entirety and all but one were recorded live.
- The supporting role played by Stark Sands was innocent and enjoyable and his performance was beautiful. Little do most viewers of the movie probably know that he was recently nominated for a Tony Award for his role in Kinky Boots on Broadway.
- Oscar Isaac’s hair.
- Cameos by Adam and Ray, from Girls.
- I have great respect for casting a cat in a movie because they are not obedient and can’t really be given much direction. I read that it complicated filming and that multiple cats had to be used. I loved the story of the cat and I don’t even like cats.
- This was by far my favorite movie appearance from Justin Timberlake. He belongs in movies that center around music.
- It ends when it should and doesn’t drag. I love a 100 minute movie.
I enjoyed this movie so much I decided to dedicate an entire blog post to it, which doesn’t happen always. So, go see it! And tell me what you think.
