O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Introduction

The movie “O Brother, Where Art Thou” tells the story of three escaped convicts. Ulysses Everett McGill, known as Everett (George Clooney), Pete (John Turturro) and Delmar O'Donnell (Tim Blake Nelson) escape from a group of prisoners to recover 1.2 million dollars in treasure that Everett claims to have stolen from an armored car and buried before his incarceration. They have only four days to find him before the valley is buried is flooded to create Lake Arkabutla, as part of a new hydroelectric project. When they start their escape, they were traveling blindly in a car manual in the railway. They board the car, and he predicts his future, similar to the oracle in the Odyssey of Homer.

The group began a treasure hunt, and when they find a congregation near a river, Pete and Delmar are baptized. As the journey continues, they encounter a young guitarist named Tommy Johnson (played by blues musician Chris Thomas King). When asked why he was standing in the middle of nowhere, he revealed that he sold his soul to the Devil in exchange for the ability to play the guitar. This encounter leaves acleptismo tone in the film based on introducing an element of the folklore of the Southern United States musician who sells his soul to the devil, being one of the greatest examples of Robert Johnson.

Discussion

In "Brother Where Art Thou?" narrates the adventures of a trio of fugitives who escaped from prison in search of treasure that one of them hid in a remote corner of Memphis. It is tenuously based on "The Odyssey"; the film becomes a "road movie" framed by the picturesque landscape of South America in the middle of the Great Depression. Moments after the escape, the convicts are a peculiar prophet to let them know what awaits them in their crazy journey. As promised them, their escapades will lead to a treasure, but not necessarily the one they were seeking (Richard, 42-48).

In any other movie, the mix of emotions, the appearance and disappearance of characters and disclosure of more or less arbitrary surprises that would cause confusion and anger. But in a film from the Coen these features represent the attractiveness of the tape itself. His scripts are often as modern fables, with characters innocent or inept to face adverse situations, where the outcome is never expected. Another thing that I noticed about the work of these brothers is that his films seem to be full of symbolism, connotations and hidden meanings. It may well be, but in view of the humor displayed in his scripts, I am inclined to think that these are mere eccentricities that integrate well with the flamboyant love stories to tell (Schaap, 109-112).

In my recent review, I scoffed at the idea that “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” could be considered a faithful adaptation of “The Odyssey.” And while the characters that make up Homer's work are present and accounted for, from the sirens to a Cyclops, the ...