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Leonard Cohen

Leonard Cohen

Actor, composer and writer · Died November 7, 2016, aged 82 · Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Leonard Norman Cohen, CC GOQ (September 21, 1934 – November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer, songwriter, poet, novelist, and painter. His work mostly explored religion, politics, isolation, sexuality, and personal relationships.[2] Cohen was inducted into both the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame as well as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was a Companion of the Order of Canada, the nation's highest civilian honor. In 2011, Cohen received one of the Prince of Asturias Awards for literature and the ninth Glenn Gould Prize. Cohen pursued a career as a poet and novelist during the 1950s and early 1960s, and did not launch a music career until 1967, at the age of 33. His first album, Songs of Leonard Cohen (1967), was followed by three more albums of folk music: Songs from a Room (1969), Songs of Love and Hate (1971) and New Skin for the Old Ceremony (1974). His 1977 record Death of a Ladies' Man was co-written and produced by Phil Spector, which was a move away from Cohen's previous minimalist sound. In 1979 Cohen returned with the more traditional Recent Songs, which blended his acoustic style with jazz and Oriental and Mediterranean influences. "Hallelujah" was first released on Cohen's studio album Various Positions in 1984. I'm Your Man in 1988 marked Cohen's turn to synthesized productions and remains his most popular album. In 1992 Cohen released its follow-up, The Future, which had dark lyrics and references to political and social unrest. Cohen returned to music in 2001 with the release of Ten New Songs, which was a major hit in Canada and Europe. His eleventh album, Dear Heather, followed in 2004. After a successful string of tours between 2008 and 2010, Cohen released three albums in the final four years of his life: Old Ideas (2012), Popular Problems (2014) and You Want It Darker (2016), the last of which was released three weeks before his death. Description above from the Wikipedia article Leonard Cohen, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia​

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
September 21, 1934
Died
November 7, 2016 (aged 82)
From
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Works as
Actor, composer and writer
Titles
6 on MovieCove · 43 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Official site (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Down 42% in 30 days

What are Leonard Cohen's films like?

Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Ideas and Self.

Themes

share of theme weight
Ideas
39%
Self
28%
Society
22%
Bonds
7%
Survival
3%
Morality
2%
Art5 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeLegacy2 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeMemory2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 8 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 4 · Serious 4 · Dark 0

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 6 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 1

Gentle: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their gentle movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 6 · Charged 2 · Intense 0

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 7 · Shifting 1 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 8 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 6 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 1

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 6 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Contemplative
8
Melancholic
4
Warm
3
Joyful
2
Tense
1
Other
4

How their films linger

Thought-provoking4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet4
  • Ambiguous2
  • Cyclical1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Leonard Cohen's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 5 of their 6 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (4).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Leonard Cohen's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

43 credits, 6 with a MovieCove page; 29 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Looking for Laurie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    Poem

  • Sheku Kanneh-Mason - My Playlist (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Composer

  • Stjepan Hauser plays Bach and Morricone @ Château de Neuschwanstein 2025 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    Composer

  • Leonard Cohen: The Bird on a Wire Concerts (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)

    Actor

  • I'll Be Gone in the Dark(2020)

    Show 7 episodes · Main Title Theme Composer

    Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all shows

  • Leonard Cohen: The Live Broadcast Sessions 1985-1993 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Actor

  • Supermax (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Show 12 episodes · Theme Song Performance

  • Al Purdy Was Here (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    as (voice)

  • Leonard Cohen: After the Gold Rush (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Actor

  • First We Take Milán (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Composer

  • Leonard Cohen: Songs from the Road (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    as Lead Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards

  • Yesno (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    as (voice)

  • Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man(2005)

    Composer · as Self

    Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films

  • Leonard Cohen: First We Take Austin (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)

    as Vocals

  • The Last Trapper (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Composer

  • In the Forest... Again (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Lyricist

  • The Favourite Game(2003)

    Novel

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • Homage to Hung Tung (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Composer

  • Leonard Cohen: Spring 96 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)

    Actor

  • I'm Your Man (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)

    Composer · Lyricist

  • The Tibetan Book of the Dead: A Way of Life (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    as Narrator

  • The Tibetan Book of the Dead: The Great Liberation (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    as Narrator

  • The Power of Speech (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    Composer

  • Songs from the Life of Leonard Cohen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    Actor

  • Leonard Cohen: San Sebastián 1988 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    Actor

  • On s'est tous défilé (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    Composer

  • Rise and Fall of a Small Film Company (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1986)

    Composer

  • Night Magic (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)

    Composer · Writer

  • I Am a Hotel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)

    as The Resident (as L.C.)

  • Miami Vice(1984)

    Show 1 episode · as Zolan

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all shows

  • Cœur bleu (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)

    Songs

  • Leonard Cohen: Under Review: 1934-1977 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)

    Actor

  • Poets on Film No. 1 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)

    Writer

  • Like a Bird on a Wire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    Songs

  • Guitare au poing (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    Actor

  • Fata Morgana(1971)

    Composer

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • McCabe & Mrs. Miller(1971)

    Composer

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • The Ernie Game (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    Composer · as Singer

  • Palace of Pleasure (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as Narrator (voice)

  • Poen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    as Narrator (voice)

  • Angel (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    Musical · as Man (uncredited)

  • Le Parfum d'Irak (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Show 20 episodes · Director

  • Leonard Cohen - Dance Me to The End Of Love European Tour (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Actor

Career shape

A full career of 43 titles, 41 of them dated from 1966 to 2026.

Biggest box office

Marianne & Leonard: Words of Love (2019)

$3.3M worldwide

Highest rated

Leonard Cohen: Bird on a Wire (1974)

Midcredits 92nd

Most popular right now

The Favourite Game (2003)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting21 of 43: 19 only acting, 2 with another roleDirecting1 of 43: 1 only directing, 0 with another roleWriting6 of 43: 3 only writing, 3 with another roleMusic15 of 43: 12 only music, 3 with another roleOther crew4 of 43: 4 only other crew, 0 with another role

43 titles, 4 with more than one role — acting and music overlap on 1 of them.

By decade

1960s4 · 4 acting · 2 crew1970s6 · 2 acting · 4 crew1980s9 · 4 acting · 5 crew1990s4 · 3 acting · 1 crew2000s6 · 1 acting · 5 crew2010s7 · 5 acting · 2 crew2020s5 · 1 acting · 4 crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it.

How do Leonard Cohen's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 72nd percentile, the median of all 4; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 82nd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

82ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Approval · how many liked their films

83rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Reach · how many have seen their films

45thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Midcredits score across 6 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up2
  • 50th to 74th3
  • 25th to 49th1

Shape of the crowd

4 of their 6 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser4

Most divisive · writer

The Favourite Game (2003)

80th percentile spread · 24% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · composer

McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)

Midcredits 93rd · 79% liked

Reviewers score the acting 50/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles; fans 69, detractors 25. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Leonard Cohen work with?

People who share at least 2 of Leonard Cohen's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Judy Collins shares the most, 2.

Actors

Producers

Mixed roles