Ethan and Joel Coen

The role Dave Van Ronk  played in influencing and benefiting the folk music boom of the 1960s cannot be overstated. Slightly more than a decade after his passing, well-regarded directors, Joel and Ethan Coen,  have announced they will be releasing a film based loosely on Van Ronk’s memoir The Mayor of MacDougal Street, CBS Films has just confirmed they’ve acquired the distribution rights of the movie “Inside Llewyn Davis.”

The film, written and directed by the Coen Brothers, is set in Greenwich Village in the early 1960s. Van Ronk’s presence in the underground folk scene during the sixties was necessary for the artists that would succeed him. He influenced young artists like Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell, who would bring the folk genre to mainstream success. The movie tells the adapted story of Van Ronk’s career, and the hardships of a young folk musician faced whilst trying to make it in New York. Oscar Isaac portrays the lead role of Llewyn Davis, a character based more or less on Van Ronk.

The film’s cast, along with the leading Isaac, includes the likes of John Goodman, Carey Mulligan, and Justin Timberlake. All of the music in the movie was produced by the collaboration of T Bone Burnett and Grammy Award Winning folk artist Marcus Mumford, as well as Timberlake. Although the film is not a musical, the music within is a chief component according to Oscar Isaac, “We did all the music live, no playback; it’s like a concert movie,” Isaac told The Hollywood Reporter last summer. “There’s like six or seven songs in it.”

The film’s release date in the United States is yet to be determined, but it is anticipated to hit the big screen within the next year. Will it do Van Ronk’s legacy justice? Historically, the Coen Brothers have produced fantastic works, such as “O Brother Where Art Thou?” and “No Country for Old Men,” not to mention cult classics like “The Big Lebowski.” However, the inclusion of mainstream singer/actor Justin Timberlake has more than a few scratching their heads. Time will tell!