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O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)

Director:
Joel Coen
COUNTRY
USA/United Kingdom/France

GENRE
Crime/Comedy

NORWEGIAN TITLE
O Brother, Where Art Thou?

RUNNING TIME
107 minutes

Producer:
Ethan Coen
Screenwriter (based on "The Odyssey" by Homer):
Joel Coen
Ethan Coen


Cast includes:

CHARACTER ACTOR/ACTRESS RATING

Ulysses Everett McGill

George Clooney

Pete

John Turturro

Delmar O'Donnel

Tim Blake Nelson ½

Tommy Johnson

Chris Thomas King -

Washington Bartholomew Hogwallop

Frank Collison -

Daniel "Big Dan" Teague

John Goodman -

Penny Wharvey-McGill

Holly Hunter -

Menelaus "Pappy" O'Daniel

Charles Durning ½-

Sheriff Cooley

Daniel von Bargen -

Homer Stokes

Wayne Duvall -

Vernon T. Waldrip

Ray McKinnon -

Baby Face Nelson

Michael Badalucco ½

 

Review

Depression era American South is given the Odyssey treatment in this crafty, beautifully shot and at times enjoyable fable from the Coen brothers. The film looks to have been a lot more fun shooting than it is watching. It's got an unmistakable meta-level quality to it that makes it almost impossible to get immersed in – except strictly intellectually. It's a film which appeals more to your senses than your sensibilities. The story plays out as constructed as you'd expect from a reinterpretation of Homer's "The Odyssey", but there are abundances of fine observations of bygone customs and mannerism which in particular will please those who remember them. The star of the show, however, is the soundtrack, which consists mainly of bluegrass and folk music from the relevant era, produced by T-Bone Burnett, most notably the unlikely hit "Man of Constant Sorrow".

Copyright © 10.01.2021 Fredrik Gunerius Fevang

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