It's time again for me to enlighten some of you who have missed out on some fantastic cinematic gems for whatever reason, on their virtues and why you should stop whatever you are doing and watch it right now, (unless you are currently playing an important part in an elaborate heist).
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Year: 2000
Directed by: Joel Coen, (Ethan Coen)
Starring: George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, Holly Hunter, John Goodman, Charles Durning, Chris Thomas King, Michael Badalucco
IMDB Plot Summary: Loosely based on Homer's "Odyssey," the movie deals with the picaresque adventures of Ulysses Everett McGill and his companions Delmar and Pete in 1930s Mississipi. Sprung from a chain gang and trying to reach Everett's home to recover the buried loot of a bank heist they are confronted by a series of strange characters--among them sirens, a cyclops, bank robber George "Baby Face" Nelson (very annoyed by that nickname), a campaigning governor and his opponent, a KKK lynch mob, and a blind prophet who warns the trio that "the treasure you seek shall not be the treasure you find."Written by Armin Ortmann <armin@sfb288.math.tu-berlin.de>
Why it is worth watching: Well for starters it's a film by the Coen brothers, who in my humble? (no that's not right), who in my Magnificent opinion (o yes that's much better), at their best produce instant classics (Raising Arizona, Millers Crossing, Fargo, The Big Lebowski) at there worse produce films that are enjoyable to watch (The Hudsucker Proxy, Intolerable Cruelty, The Ladykillers, Burn After Reading). O Brother, Where Art Thou is definitely one of their better works.
Like it says above this comedy is based partly on the Odyssey (with many characters names and/or traits taken from the epic) and mixed with a heavy dose of Southern Culture and legends, this film is a true delight visually and as well as aurally (though I will come to that a lot later). Now I'm going to make an assumption that you are all familiar with the Odyssey in at least some part. If you aren't then for fucks sakes what have you been doing with your life. It's been around for about 3000 years, and been translated into countless media, including the fantastic Franco-Japanese animated Ulysses 31 set in Space. They even animated and set it in fucking space for those of you who lack the time or inclination to either read it or watch a film version of it. Anyway I like I said I will assume everyone reading this is aware of it on some level, hence preventing my head from exploding.
George Clooney takes on the part of Ulysses (The Roman name for the Greek hero Odysseus in case any of you are wondering) Everett McGill , and completely plays it against type. His Ulysses is a not wise nor heroic, but instead a small conman who gets his two "friends" to follow him by pretending to know the answer to every single question they may have. He also seems to lack the effortless charm that had up to that point been Clooney's trademark in the roles he played. This is not to say that McGill is not a likeable character, when interacting with his daughters or indeed his wife Penelope, he shows a true tenderness you don't see elsewhere in the film, (well apart from one scene). Holly Hunter playing Penelope is the only major female character in this film, however whenever she is on screen there is now doubt who is in charge. Wise to all her husbands tricks, she comes across as a bit cold most of the time, but never so much that it turns you against her.
If I was to just talk about the great cast put together by the Coen's for this film, we would be here forever and though that would obviously be a treat for you I have other things to do. Suffice to say every actor in this film brings their A-game and shows great comedic chops. Though I will give a special mention to John Turturro and Tim Blake Nelson, though taking a back seat to Clooney throughout most of the film, they still flourish and are possibly the true heart of the piece.
Now setting the film in the deep south of America during the depression also allowed the Coen's to produce a unique soundtrack that showcased a wide variety of music from the south. Generally when you think of music from the Southern states more often then not you will think of "Country and Western", here you are opened up to Bluegrass, Traditional southern folk songs, Gospel, Blues as well as country, giving a great insight into a rich cultural heritage of the area that is so often ignored due to the other less desirable aspects of the area. The songs that tend to stick out for me are 'O Death' preformed by Ralph Stanley, 'Down to the River to Pray' preformed by Alison Krauss, 'Hard Time Killing Floor Blues' preformed by Chris Thomas King, 'Didn't Leave Nobody but the Baby' preformed by Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Gillian Welch, and of course I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow by Soggy Bottom Boys & Dan Tyminski.
Anyway go watch the film and then relax listening to the soundtrack. Then if you haven't done so far go read the Odyssey.
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Year: 2000
Directed by: Joel Coen, (Ethan Coen)
Starring: George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, Holly Hunter, John Goodman, Charles Durning, Chris Thomas King, Michael Badalucco
IMDB Plot Summary: Loosely based on Homer's "Odyssey," the movie deals with the picaresque adventures of Ulysses Everett McGill and his companions Delmar and Pete in 1930s Mississipi. Sprung from a chain gang and trying to reach Everett's home to recover the buried loot of a bank heist they are confronted by a series of strange characters--among them sirens, a cyclops, bank robber George "Baby Face" Nelson (very annoyed by that nickname), a campaigning governor and his opponent, a KKK lynch mob, and a blind prophet who warns the trio that "the treasure you seek shall not be the treasure you find."Written by Armin Ortmann <armin@sfb288.math.tu-berlin.de>
Why it is worth watching: Well for starters it's a film by the Coen brothers, who in my humble? (no that's not right), who in my Magnificent opinion (o yes that's much better), at their best produce instant classics (Raising Arizona, Millers Crossing, Fargo, The Big Lebowski) at there worse produce films that are enjoyable to watch (The Hudsucker Proxy, Intolerable Cruelty, The Ladykillers, Burn After Reading). O Brother, Where Art Thou is definitely one of their better works.
Like it says above this comedy is based partly on the Odyssey (with many characters names and/or traits taken from the epic) and mixed with a heavy dose of Southern Culture and legends, this film is a true delight visually and as well as aurally (though I will come to that a lot later). Now I'm going to make an assumption that you are all familiar with the Odyssey in at least some part. If you aren't then for fucks sakes what have you been doing with your life. It's been around for about 3000 years, and been translated into countless media, including the fantastic Franco-Japanese animated Ulysses 31 set in Space. They even animated and set it in fucking space for those of you who lack the time or inclination to either read it or watch a film version of it. Anyway I like I said I will assume everyone reading this is aware of it on some level, hence preventing my head from exploding.
George Clooney takes on the part of Ulysses (The Roman name for the Greek hero Odysseus in case any of you are wondering) Everett McGill , and completely plays it against type. His Ulysses is a not wise nor heroic, but instead a small conman who gets his two "friends" to follow him by pretending to know the answer to every single question they may have. He also seems to lack the effortless charm that had up to that point been Clooney's trademark in the roles he played. This is not to say that McGill is not a likeable character, when interacting with his daughters or indeed his wife Penelope, he shows a true tenderness you don't see elsewhere in the film, (well apart from one scene). Holly Hunter playing Penelope is the only major female character in this film, however whenever she is on screen there is now doubt who is in charge. Wise to all her husbands tricks, she comes across as a bit cold most of the time, but never so much that it turns you against her.
If I was to just talk about the great cast put together by the Coen's for this film, we would be here forever and though that would obviously be a treat for you I have other things to do. Suffice to say every actor in this film brings their A-game and shows great comedic chops. Though I will give a special mention to John Turturro and Tim Blake Nelson, though taking a back seat to Clooney throughout most of the film, they still flourish and are possibly the true heart of the piece.
Now setting the film in the deep south of America during the depression also allowed the Coen's to produce a unique soundtrack that showcased a wide variety of music from the south. Generally when you think of music from the Southern states more often then not you will think of "Country and Western", here you are opened up to Bluegrass, Traditional southern folk songs, Gospel, Blues as well as country, giving a great insight into a rich cultural heritage of the area that is so often ignored due to the other less desirable aspects of the area. The songs that tend to stick out for me are 'O Death' preformed by Ralph Stanley, 'Down to the River to Pray' preformed by Alison Krauss, 'Hard Time Killing Floor Blues' preformed by Chris Thomas King, 'Didn't Leave Nobody but the Baby' preformed by Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Gillian Welch, and of course I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow by Soggy Bottom Boys & Dan Tyminski.
Anyway go watch the film and then relax listening to the soundtrack. Then if you haven't done so far go read the Odyssey.
