Rating: 
Summary: A triumph of a movie, thoroughly enjoyable
Review: The Coen brothers have a cult following, but until I saw this movie, I didn't count myself among the masses that love the Coens. However, with this movie, this brother team has cemented their reputation as serious and skilled filmmakers with a lot to say and a stylish way of saying it.This movie is a loose retelling of "The Odyssey" by Homer, set in the Depression-era Deep South. George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson make an unlikely team of escaped convicts who embark on a journey of the weird and wonderful. Watch for the appearance of many famous Odyssey allusions, such as the Sirens and the Cyclops (among others). The Coens' quirky take on this classic tale is delightful and perfectly executed, and the script is beautifully and humorously written. The sets and filming are artistic and a bit mythical, and the casting choices are just great. The film is peopled with interesting characters, in classic Coen brothers fashion. Look for great supporting characters played by John Goodman, Holly Hunter, Charles Durning, and others. And that's not all! Interwoven in this film are great depression-era songs and some original songs, with excellent music direction by T-bone Burnett. Who says Moulin Rouge is the first movie in a long while to take the musical format? This movie is just as much a musical as Baz Luhrmann's much-hyped movie. I really believe that this movie reaches heights that previous Coen brothers movies (even Fargo) haven't reached. In addition, I believe this movie was slighted by the Academy during Oscar time. This movie was one of the best films of the year, and excelled in every aspect a film can be awarded for.
Rating:
Summary: "I'm not sure that's Pete..."
Review: I'm 66 & I've seen a lot of movies, but I've never watched one as many time as I have this one or been so quick to buy a copy for myself. Everyone I know is singing the songs, from my 92 year old mother to my 3 year old granddaughter. It might actually revive the art of 3-part harmony. Everyone in it looks like he's having the time of his life. I can't look at Tim Blake Nelson w/o laughing, & his singing voice is beguiling. George Clooney is PERFECT, Charles Durning is stupendous, & I think the guy who plays the manager of WEZY & the poor woman who whispers "That's Baby Face Nelson" in the bank deserve a new category of Oscars:"Most Memorable One-minute Performance". I loved the women's shapeless feedsack dresses & faces w/o makeup. I love the baptism procession to "Down in the River to Pray" (best song in the movie). I love the crazy mixed-up chronology w/Pappy O'Daniel (beloved former governor of Texas) & his Lightcrust Doughboys metamorphosed into governor of Mississippi & his Farina band. I loved the many profound commentaries on human nature like Clooney's shortlived religiousity. No one writes comedy dialogue like the Coens. This is a masterpiece of good clean intelligent fun, & that's always been the rarest commodity in the world. My eyes cross when I read the handful of negative reviews of this pure delight of a movie. Who ARE these people?
Rating: 
Summary: O Brother, What a Neat Movie!
Review: I liked many things about this film. The stereotypes of Southern culture we've all grown up with were cleverly caricatured...the fat but good-natured politicians, the fat and ill-natured ones, the Ku Klux Klan, chain gangs and their cruelty, the simpleminded and uncultured poor. Then there is the denatured moonshine on Saturday night, and the good-natured "You-are-my-Sunshines" on Sunday morning. And that odd Southern combination of careful etiquette with downright meanness ("Well Suh, I'll thank you to get off my porch a'fore I blow you ta Kingdom Come.") Southern populism with all its racial contradictions- low culture brought to a high art.
And let's not forget the music! "Land sakes alive... them Soggybottom Boys shore can sing"! All of this is tied together in a most appealing way with Homer's Oddyssey- the blind oracle on the railroad tracks, the Sirens singing in the river... This movie is really different! Nostalgia for the Old South brought back full force, leaving you feeling guilty for liking it, just the same. Senryu
Rating: 
Summary: Animal cruelty glorified
Review: Yes, I realize it is just a movie, but I don't find amimal cruelty funny. That is the scary thing about dark humor though - it makes it acceptable to laugh at such things. I should have known when I found out the people responsible for this mess had made Fargo (murder, ha ha). I tried to give this movie a chance because the soundtrack was done by people I liked but it was too disturbing and totally unentertaining for me, sorry.
Rating:
Summary: Repeated viewings.....
Review: will be required. This is a very funny highly enjoyable movie. You cannot watch it just once to fully appreciate the whole thing. To get all that is in this movie you need to own it. The first viewing will just whet your appetite, if it doesn't trust me and watch it again. You enjoyment will grow with each viewing. The story centers around Everett McGill (Clooney) trying to get back to his wife and some buried treasure. To accomplish this he brings his prison buddies who are shackled to him (Turtorro and Nelson). This trio finds adventure and humor in the Klan, Bad politicians, loose women, backstabbing family, Bible salesmen, and all manner of quirky characters on their journey. The characters are wonderful. The performances by the entire cast are fantastic. This is not a George Clooney movie you have come to expect. He is so different and fresh and funny you won't expect the performance you are seeing. His costars are equally perfect. You will find yourself reciting lines from the movie that are bound to become classics. On top of all this is the music. This is bluegrass and oldtimey sounds. I realize that most people are probably not fans of this type stuff and honestly neither was I, but the Coen brothers make it work. The music is half the fun. I find myself singing the songs around the house. It is a movie that can be watched by the family. There area few bits of profanity, not too much but the story and the humor and especially the music can be enjoyed by everyone.
Rating: 
Summary: This Film Does Get Better!
Review: Oh Brother Where Art Thou is one of those movies that gets better every time you see it. My first reaction to it was - 'what the heck is this?' and then when I watched it again last night - for the fourth time - I found it very entertaining, strange, humorous and definitely mesmerizing in parts. It's got everything, weirdness, action, adventure, strangeness and lots of very difficult performances. George Clooney leads the ensemble with appearances by Charles Durning and John Goodman. The films tells the story of three convicts from the 30's escaping their prison sentence but with the problem of finding a large amount of money hundreds miles away. Two of the convicts are not so bright and George, although seemingly a person who is well read, is somewhat out of tune with reality. This film is definitely for the eclectic person who likes the unusual but entertaining strangeness that this movie is. Rent it once and then watch it twice.... the third time you'll probably buy it! (8-13-02)
Rating:
Summary: The Best Coen Comedy!
Review: While my favorite Coen brothers' film is "Miller's Crossing," "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" is my favorite comedy by these two mavericks. Loosely based on Homer's "The Odyssey," earning an Oscar nomination for best adapted screenplay even though the Coens' admitted to reading only the Cliff Notes, "O Brother" is the Coens' tribute to American bluegrass music. For some reason, this movie was shamefully snubbed at the Oscars, but George Clooney earned his Golden Globe award for best actor. Clooney plays the fast-talking Clark Gable wannabe, Ulysses Everett MacGill. Unfortunately for Ulysses, his mouth runs about five steps ahead of his brain, and his delight in the clever, hyper-articulate use of the English language cannot mask his delightful naivete. In a performance of sly self-mockery (can you think of another major film star who would so earnestly ask for a hair net to sleep in or speak movingly about being a "Dapper Dan Man"?), Clooney steals one heck of a show. Ulysses escapes from a chain gang in Depression-era Mississippi with his sidekicks, the hot-blooded Pete (John Turturro) and easy-going Delmar (Tim Blake Nelson). Allegedly going to find some treasure before a river gets dammed, sinking the treasure beneath a deep lake, this trio begins a bizarre journey across the Deep South. Along the way they meet guitarist Tommy Johnson, who followed an American musical legend by selling his soul to the devil at a crossroads in exchange for the ability to play the guitar, Big Jim Teague (the Cyclops), three Sirens, a blind seer, Baby Face Nelson, a spelling-challenged rifle-toting youngster, and Governor Pappy O'Daniel (conveniently relocated from Texas to Mississippi). Recalling the ultimate road story of the Odyssey, "O Brother" breezes from episode to episode with delightful ease. As ever with Coen brothers' films, the movie looks wonderful and feels authentic. You can feel the oppressive heat of the Mississippi sunshine, you choke on dusty roads, and you glory in the greens and yellows of the languid countryside. Unlike so many films set in the Old South, characters are fully-realized (even if hilariously flawed) rather than caricatures. The minor details of daily life in the South (a mild oath from Ulysses gets a stern warning -- "Watch your mouth, young feller, this is a public shop") are delightful touches. Of course, the true star of this movie, other than Clooney, is the soundtrack. Almost solely responsible for the recent Bluegrass explosion, "O Brother" lovingly grounds this musical genre in its appropriate time and space, and the songs form a perfect accompaniment to the rest of the movie. When the congregation sings is gospel tunes, or Pappy O'Daniel leads the Soggy Bottom Boys (what a name!) in a rendition of "You Are My Sunshine," the powerful force of music resonates throughout this delightful film. One of the best movies of recent years, it's hard to understand why "O Brother" was so snubbed by the Academy. Like other recent snubs (e.g., "Shawshank Redemption," this movie is sure to generate more critical acclaim as it ages. Whether it's for the wonderful acting, terrific writing, or amazing soundtrack, "O Brother" should be in your collection!
Rating:
Summary: Oh. My. God.
Review: Joel and Ethan, the inimitable and unstoppable Coen brothers, score yet again. It's an over-the-top funny - and touching - movie about three cons on the run in Mississippi in the 30s. George Clooney, playing dapper Ulysses Everett McGill, is the thinker, the planner, the schemer, of the impossible trio. He's slick, quick-talking, and funny as hell.
John Turturro and Tim Blake Nelson play the two side-kicks, dumbos who go along for the ride and add comic bits to the action as the runaways encounter every possible sort of human as obstacles in their path. There's a blind man, a one-eyed crook, sexy singing girls, a Blues guitarist, crooked politicians (is there any other kind?), and so forth.
And the soundtrack is so incredibly good that you'll want to go right out and buy it - as I did - and I don't even like country. But this is foot-stompin' banjo-banging, twangy bluegrass stuff that's totally infectious.
If you haven't yet seen it, SEE IT NOW.
Rating:
Summary: A comic journey filled with great music
Review: "O Brother, Where Art Thou," directed by Joel Coen, is a quirky delight. The screenplay, by Joel and Ethan Coen, is allegedly a loose adaptation of Homer's Odyssey; I think of the script as more of an original story with certain elements inspired by the Odyssey. But however you look at the film, it is a unique and well-made piece of cinematic art. George Clooney plays Ulysses Everett McGill, an escaped prisoner who embarks upon an episodic journey with two fellow escapees in the Depression-era Southern United States. Along the way they encounter a one-eyed Bible salesman, "good-ole-boy" politicians, and Ku Klux Klansmen, among other characters. Clooney is hilarious as McGill, and the rest of the cast is also excellent. Tim Blake Nelson is particularly engaging as McGill's Forrest Gump-ish comrade, Delmar. The film is full of excellent music that evokes the folk traditions of the rural U.S. The costumes, sets, and cinematography are all first-rate, and blend perfectly with the other elements of the film. There are some great comic sequences, many with a satiric bite. Overall, "O Brother" is a really different, richly entertaining film.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Coen Comedy!
Review: While my favorite Coen brothers' film is "Miller's Crossing," "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" is my favorite comedy by these two mavericks. Loosely based on Homer's "The Odyssey," earning an Oscar nomination for best adapted screenplay even though the Coens' admitted to reading only the Cliff Notes, "O Brother" is the Coens' tribute to American bluegrass music. For some reason, this movie was shamefully snubbed at the Oscars, but George Clooney earned his Golden Globe award for best actor. Clooney plays the fast-talking Clark Gable wannabe, Ulysses Everett MacGill. Unfortunately for Ulysses, his mouth runs about five steps ahead of his brain, and his delight in the clever, hyper-articulate use of the English language cannot mask his delightful naivete. In a performance of sly self-mockery (can you think of another major film star who would so earnestly ask for a hair net to sleep in or speak movingly about being a "Dapper Dan Man"?), Clooney steals one heck of a show. Ulysses escapes from a chain gang in Depression-era Mississippi with his sidekicks, the hot-blooded Pete (John Turturro) and easy-going Delmar (Tim Blake Nelson). Allegedly going to find some treasure before a river gets dammed, sinking the treasure beneath a deep lake, this trio begins a bizarre journey across the Deep South. Along the way they meet guitarist Tommy Johnson, who followed an American musical legend by selling his soul to the devil at a crossroads in exchange for the ability to play the guitar, Big Jim Teague (the Cyclops), three Sirens, a blind seer, Baby Face Nelson, a spelling-challenged rifle-toting youngster, and Governor Pappy O'Daniel (conveniently relocated from Texas to Mississippi). Recalling the ultimate road story of the Odyssey, "O Brother" breezes from episode to episode with delightful ease. As ever with Coen brothers' films, the movie looks wonderful and feels authentic. You can feel the oppressive heat of the Mississippi sunshine, you choke on dusty roads, and you glory in the greens and yellows of the languid countryside. Unlike so many films set in the Old South, characters are fully-realized (even if hilariously flawed) rather than caricatures. The minor details of daily life in the South (a mild oath from Ulysses gets a stern warning -- "Watch your mouth, young feller, this is a public shop") are delightful touches. Of course, the true star of this movie, other than Clooney, is the soundtrack. Almost solely responsible for the recent Bluegrass explosion, "O Brother" lovingly grounds this musical genre in its appropriate time and space, and the songs form a perfect accompaniment to the rest of the movie. When the congregation sings is gospel tunes, or Pappy O'Daniel leads the Soggy Bottom Boys (what a name!) in a rendition of "You Are My Sunshine," the powerful force of music resonates throughout this delightful film. One of the best movies of recent years, it's hard to understand why "O Brother" was so snubbed by the Academy. Like other recent snubs (e.g., "Shawshank Redemption," this movie is sure to generate more critical acclaim as it ages. Whether it's for the wonderful acting, terrific writing, or amazing soundtrack, "O Brother" should be in your collection!
| 
