O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)

Only Joel and Ethan Coen, the fraternal director and producer team behind art-house hits such as The Big Lebowski and Fargo and masters of quirky and ultra-stylish genre subversion, would dare nick the plot line of Homer's Odyssey for a comic picaresque saga about three cons on the run in 1930s Mississippi. Our wandering hero in this case is one Ulysses Everett McGill, a slick-tongued wise guy with a thing about hair pomade (George Clooney, blithely sending up his own dapper image) who talks his chain-gang buddies (Coen-movie regular John Turturro and newcomer Tim Blake Nelson) into lighting out after some buried loot he claims to know of. En route they come up against a prophetic blind man on a railroad truck, a burly, one-eyed baddie (the ever-magnificent John Goodman), a trio of sexy singing ladies, a blues guitarist who's sold his soul to the devil, a brace of crooked politicos on the stump, a manic-depressive bank robber, and--well, you get the idea. Into this, their most relaxed film yet, the Coens have tossed a beguiling ragbag of inconsequential situations, a wealth of looping, left-field dialogue, and a whole stash of gags both verbal and visual. O Brother (the title's lifted from Preston Sturges's classic 1941 comedy Sullivan's Travels) is furthermore graced with glowing, burnished photography from Roger Deakins and a masterly soundtrack from T-Bone Burnett that pays loving homage to American '30s folk styles--blues, gospel, bluegrass, jazz, and more. And just to prove that the brothers haven't lost their knack for bad-taste humor, we get a Ku Klux Klan rally choreographed like a cross between a Nuremberg rally and a Busby Berkeley musical. --Philip Kemp Amazon.com

"O Brother, Where Art Thou?", says it all!

O Brother, Where Art Thou?
I wasn't sure I was going to like this movie. I LOVED It! Once I started watching the movie I was glued to it in disbelief. I laughed so hard I was crying. To coin an old phrase, the movie is a scream!!! If you like movies that keep you laughing and on your toes, this is a definite winner. The movie really takes you back in time, the scenery, language, etc. The acting is the BEST! The actors were at their very finest. Highly recommended. November 27, 2008

A Classic

In the late 60s, my husband and reviewed films as stringers for a syndicated critic. If you watch enough of them, you can recognize quality very quickly. "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?" is the kind of motion picture that comes along only once in a generation. It is mythic, original, funny, warm, and touching. We enjoy watching it again and again. Even the soundtrack is a masterpiece.O Brother, Where Art Thou?
In fact, we purchased a copy of the film after our twenty-something daughter played the CD for us. Highly recommended!
November 26, 2008

Great family movie

After singing most of the songs from this movie in choir, my son suggested we watch it. I put it off for several weeks, thinking that this movie just wasn't my thing. So I finally gave in and was very surprised at how much I enjoyed it. My son did have to explain a few things for me (he had watched it in english class), but it really is entertaining. Plus it gave me some quality time with my 17 year old son. Another plus was the great music. November 23, 2008

Depression-era Odyssey would do Homer proud

Excellent interpretation of Homer's Odyssey with a rare accurate portrayal of the South of the 1930s. Excellent character actors and outstanding music played in the period style. October 18, 2008

One of the funniest movies of all time.

This Movie is great on so many levels. The writing is hillarious and casting is spot on. Clooney's character is great. The music is great. I just don't know how to praise it any more. I've watched the movie multiple times and still laugh out loud every time. Thats why I had to add it to my collection. October 13, 2008

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