In Ethan and Joel Coen's film called O Brother, Where Art
Thou? a band of three misfit prison escapees seek a treasure as told by their
so called leader Ulysses Everett McGill, The journey for their treasure
takes them from breaking loose from a prison chain gain, to writing and signing
a top hit song to escaping from the clutches of the Klu Klux Klan. The opening
credits of this film state it is based upon the epic poem by Homer called The
Odyssey. As many of today’s films
are filled with sex, drugs and violence this film has hardly any of those and
for those reasons it makes it one of the best films of its time.
Some negative critics of the film don’t
see the humor, or the historical importance of the film. According
to an independent film critic named Christopher “This is a story of selfishness and stupidity signifying
nothing. The characters live in a beautiful world and have zero appreciation
for it.”(1) Christopher perhaps missed the entire point of Ulysses’ dimwitted
sidekicks and the fact that there are people that live the way the characters
do and that is in a selfish and stupid fashion. Who is Christopher to say that
their world is beautiful? Would the world seem beautiful if you were a wanted
fugitive during the depression era? I believe the Coen brothers did a brilliant
job of telling the tale a three less than intelligent men setting a goal and
sticking with it through thick and thin.
The fact that O Brother, Where Art
Thou does not have any sex, drugs and minimal violence in it sets it apart from
nearly all other films. There is humor
throughout the film and sometimes it is missed in the first, second and even
third viewing. One of the funnier lines is when the trio was approaching a rundown
farmstead and a young boy approaches them with a guy and starts to name who he
has shot at. When the boy said “I nicked the census man” Delmar O’Donnell
responds “now there’s a good boy” What is historical about that is the census
(or the Federal Government) was not very popular with the citizens of this
country in that time period.
O Brother, Where Art Thou shall stand
the test of time and may even become more popular as the years go on as it
tells a simple tale during a dark time in our countries history. Although the
main character may be selfish, and the three of them would probably be
considered “stupid” by someone, they are truly unique characters that you will
root for throughout the film and anyone that takes the time to watch this
lighthearted film will have a smile on their face when it is over.
(1) http://www.metacritic.com/movie/o-brother-where-art-thou
This movie was very good and the adventures these men experienced was phenomenal. There escapades took them to so many places. The story was amazing and insightful. Even though the crimes that these men have committed had them in prison, they still had a goal and a plan to reach that goal. They had gotten off track a few times, but they miraculously found themselves on the path to reach their goal. There were important life lessons to be learned amongst the comedy of errors these men experienced.
ReplyDeleteO'Brother Where Art Though is a tremendous movie. It is a journey that takes these men to hell and back. The story line of this movie is phenomenal. This movie is just one of many that I have seen that shows you that regardless of the situation you find yourself in you can achieve any goal if you are determined enough to work hard for it. Even though their course was altered several times along the way, they always remembered the goal that started them on their journey. There are many important lessons to be learned from all of the tragedies that have occurred. These men experienced many things throughout this film and they worked hard to achieve their goals. And through hard work and determination the were successfu with their journey....almost!
ReplyDeleteThis is an extremely underrated film. Out of the dozens of films that chronicle the journey of three or more men (Without a Paddle, Four Lions, Three Men and a baby, etc.) this has to be one of my all-time favorites. As with similar films the main character is the self-appointed and misguided leader of the group. Although being set in depression-era Mississippi this group of uneducated, superstitious, prisoners go far beyond where logic and reasoning would have stopped them. This is one of the few impressive films that will have you laughing the entire time while actually convincing you to dislike its villain, played by the always lovable John Goodman. For that reason alone this movie has made my own top 10 list.
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