Inside 'Inside Llewyn Davis'

The hotly anticipated Coen brothers film tips its hat to a '60s folk icon

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Oscar Isaac plays a fictional folk musician in 'Inside Llewyn Davis.' The film is loosely based on Dave Van Ronk's posthumous memoir.

The folk music scene that flourished around New York's Greenwich Village provides the setting of Inside Llewyn Davis, the upcoming film from writer-directors Joel and Ethan Coen. The film doesn't have an official release date yet, but a trailer released this week gave fans a glimpse at the Coens' recreation of a distinct era in New York music history.

That recreation was loosely inspired by The Mayor of MacDougal Street, a posthumous memoir from folk icon Dave Van Ronk. While film's title is a sly nod to a 1972 compilation called Inside Dave Van Ronk, Elijah Wald, who co-wrote Van Ronk's memoir, tells John Schaefer that the Coens' film isn't a biopic.

"Things that happened to Dave happen to Llewyn Davis. But the character of Llewyn Davis is not based on Dave," Wald says. "It's some of the other characters who are pulled out of the book."

Wald joins Soundcheck to talk about Van Ronk, the Greenwich Village scene and the world of Inside Llewyn Davis. Watch the film trailer below. And, hear The Roches pay tribute to a storied Village folk landmark, Gerde's Folk City, in our studio with their song "Face Down at Folk City."

Guests:

Elijah Wald

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