This is one of my favorite movies of all time. The wacky characters, the plot twists, the dialogue, the music, the look and feel of it all. Each scene is a joy to watch. Every actor and actress manages to create personalities that are just plain fun to watch. Any critic that rates “Clerks 2” and “You, Me and Dupree” better than “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” should be fired. Don’t rent this movie; buy it because you’ll want to watch it more than once or twice.… Expand

Non-coenheads just don't get it. Wanna-be-coenheads want to. The scene on the stage near the end is pure coenism. Made the movie. Long live the Soggey Bottom Boys!

It's not the Coens' best work - it's a bit aimless and inconsequential - but it's only actively bad by their staggeringly high standards. It's still a "good" film. Worth watching just for the sirens, singing "Didn't Leave Nobody But The Baby" acapella, very slowly. Nice.

Coen brothers' most satisfying movie. Finally, the Coens found material perfectly suited for their zany and irreverent sensibilty. Truly awesome are several musical numbers that are as hypnotic and sublime as any caught on film. These musical interludes work on us like black magic, seducing us and then digesting our sensory apparatus down to swirling abstraction. The source material of the movie is the forgotten debris of Americana but what's fashioned out of this is something entirely bold and original. … Expand

I was kind of expecting a lot more from this movie.. I don't know, I guess I give it a 4, because I think that's how many times I laughed. Seriously, maybe I didn't get the jokes, or I don't know, but this movie was not as good as some people say it is. Boring most of the time, and doesn't keep you paying attention all the time.

This is one of the greatest comedy films I have ever seen. The acting is simply brilliant. This is due, in part, to some very clever writing. Kudos go out to George Clooney, Tim Blake Nelson, and John Turturro for their portrayals of the southern version of the Three Stooges. The music was awesome.

Loved the movie and the music.

A barnburner (literally)...raises the bar on idiot humor to a level never before achieved -- the Three Stooges on an odyssey of mythic but purely American proportions.

Interesting series of vignettes. Clooney actually did what the Director told him in this one. The movie is kinder to the society it occurs in than the characters themselves - takes the road less travelled to reach the Hollywood premise that life boils down to a hit record.

I loved this movie! Our family watched it together and everyone from our 9 year old son to my parents in their 70s laughed; truly enjoying themselves. How often do you find a movie with such broad appeal? In an interesting side note, both my parents who grew up in Mississippi in the 1930s said the movie did an excellent job of capturing the era.

Rosenbaum and Gleiberman are idiots. 'Nihilistic'? 'Contemptuous'? Oh, I'm sorry, Rosenbaum's idea of a good comedy is "Down With Love." This is an EXCELLENT picture. It looks and sounds gorgeous (beautifully shot and scored), and anyone who dismisses it as a collection of yuppie relics doesn't have a clue This is goofy, off-the-wall stuff that RELISHES in the past. This isn't a paper-thin musical pastiche like, say, The Big Chill. The music is a crucial element in this picture where the characters and the songs feed off each other. Supposedly, the Coen Brothers never read the Odyssey and basically used elements already known through pop culture (they did something similar with Fargo - the opening title card says it's 'based on a true story,' but it's complete fiction). This picture owes a greater debt to Preston Sturges, one of their biggest influences and to whom they pay homage in this picture's title. Sturges made some of the craziest screwball comedies of all-time, and that's exactly what we get here. It's funny not because of one-liners but because of the nutjobs and bizarre scenarios that fill this picture. To say it's contemptuous is absurd - EVERYONE in the Coen Brothers' universe is a bit loopy. It's not their best picture, but it's still right up there with Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, Fargo, and the rest.… Expand

The writing, directing, and producing team of Joel Coen and Ethan Coen created this picaresque comedy (inspired in part by Homer's The Odyssey) set in the Deep South during the Depression. Suave and fancy-talking Everett Ulysses McGill (George Clooney), dim-witted Delmar (Tim Blake Nelson), and easily-excitable Pete (John Turturro) are serving time together on a prison chain gang. Everett knows where $1.2 million is hidden that's theirs for the taking, and the three manage to escape; however, a stranger soon warns them that they'll find treasure, but not the sort they're looking for. As Everett and his partners hit the road, they happen upon a gluttonous bible salesman, Big Dan Teague (John Goodman); meet up with Baby Face Nelson (Michael Badalucco) as he robs a bank; encounter three Sirens doing their washing; run into Everett's estranged wife Penny (Holly Hunter), who has told everyone her husband was killed in a train wreck; find themselves in the middle of a heated campaign between political boss Pappy O'Daniel (Charles Durning), and reformist candidate Homer Stokes (Wayne Duvall); and even find time to make a hit record as The Soggy Bottom Boys. Noted songwriter T-Bone Burnett helped compile the songs (combining vintage country blues tunes with originals in the same style), while Carter Burwell composed the background score. Incidentally, the title O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a reference to the classic Preston Sturges comedy Sullivan's Travels, in which a director plans to make a serious "message picture" with that name. O Brother, Where Art Thou? is the number one motion picture of the year, and has all the hip and jazz to almost reach the standards of The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly.… Expand

It was an alright movie. The best part was the old governor guy dancing that made me chuckle, and the criminal crying about his nickname. Oh and the part where that Big Dan guy hit Delmarr and Evertt on the head with a huge branch.

A genuinly wacky adventure that takes you on a ride of its own.

This movie is a romping good time. Pure entertainment. Some critics have no sense of humor.

Oh, how I love this movie! I find myself going over many of the scenes' dialog and smiling to myself, and I am certainly singing the songs from the outstanding soundtrack on a daily basis. Coen brothers, thank you again.

Disappointingly low-key Coen brothers outing with good cinematography and OK acting. But it offended me (cows getting run over, everyone looked mentally unstable, dogs drowning) at times, and the timing is slow, and I was quite bored, to be honest.

Maybe I was just addicted to "Man Of Constant Sorrow," but I bought this one on DVD!

This is a great entire family movie. The music was wonderful but not overwelming. Thank you!

I love this ole' timey stuff.

Brill-ee-yunt. Any critic who panned it probably didn't understand it. 'Nuff said.

Bona-fide 10; the kind of movie you need to see a dozen times. Clooney was (surprisingly) excellent, and Charles Durning steals the show as Pappy O'Daniel. Any film that has a character being ridden out of town on a rail is aces in my book.

A quirky, original movie that keeps viewers laughing throughout. Very realistic and well-played out characters in a different wacky predicament at every turn. Though some may find the humor too crazy and perhaps just plain dumb, I thought it was a winner!

This is possibly one of the best movies of its time! They don't make many movies like this it has a great plot, humor, and of course actors. George Clooney is excellent in this movie!

Strange adaptation of the Odyssey, although the great depression would hardly be my choice. The part where that criminal fired at the cows was funny.

Not the best movie ever, but certainly a good one.

Moving and transporting -- beautiful and hilarious... Simply a stunning work of art.

This is a great movie! It's not just the comedy thats great, its the astounding broad appeal of the movie that was actually captured in this film. Everyone that I know of, regardless of age, can manage to love this movie. Also, the entire films, in the artistic view of being able to portray the time period (the backdrops, the people of the time, etc. etc..), is unrivaled! Also, the dialogue of this movie is amazing - from the intellectual and witty Everett with company of the constantly dumbfounded and comedic Delmar to the always-stubborn and hard-headed Pete. Truly amazing. "I don't mean to be tellin' tales out of school, but there's a man in there that'll pay ya 15 bucks to sing into his can." The innocence in this character... Perfect.… Expand

This movie was amazing and it was one of my favorite of all time. My favorite scene was the one on the KKK. I liked it because they were trashing the KKK. When they cut the cord for the burning cross that was just hilarious.

"O Brother" is less a nostalgic screwball comedy than a highly contrived satire which emphasises the cruelty and absurdity of human existence. One may find the wanton slaughter of cows, superficially sexualized Sirens, satanic black side kick, mocked/idealized villains, commercial contemporary take on folk music, incidental ties to Greek tragedy, and general aimlessness (tied together with a cute little literal string) to be light-hearted fun, but to see it as repugnant is an equally appropriate reaction. This is a story of selfishness and stupidity signifying nothing. The characters live in a beautiful world and have zero appreciation for it. This is exemplified by the slick, soulless direction and obvious, ugly digitized cinematography. "O Brother" can be called nihilistic and smug with perfect reason because, for all it creativity and polish, it is an intentionally aloft meditation on negativity and cynicism. At least "Days of Heaven" seems to have some sense of appreciation for atmosphere and environment even as it utilizes Depression era elements. Nihilism can be overtly expressed or implied, and "O Brother" wears it less like a badge than like a favorite pair of dirty socks kept in some high drawer, right next to a baby skull paper weight for a pornographic magazine. Sometimes laughter is a sign of sickness. JAFO (just another ****ing opinion) for what it is worth. Cheers.… Expand

It's totally funny, and the music is great.

This movie was great. Clooney did an excellent job as a smooth talking rascal.

Superbly written, well acted, great cinematography, super soundtrack. Maybe the best Coen movie to date.

A good, funny, witty sing-a-long! The Coen Bros. will never cease to amaze me.

I love this movie! I rented it and watched it twice, then bought it. What a wonderful ride, definitely bona fide!!

Some scenes are wonderful and hilarious, but the movie overall is... well, boring!

Oh brother, what the f... was that? no plot or story of any kind, the only redeeming quality was the soundtrack.

One of my favorite films ever. Ignorant people who do not know how to read are the only ones who wouldnt like it since it happens to even preface in the beginning that it is based on the Odyssey, which was written by Homer for all you non-reading fans. Only an illiterate moron would give it a bad score of any kind. Awesome soundtrack as well!

A deranged adventure though many a wierd ways. But, subsequently brillant!

How anyone could dislike this comic odyssey is beyond me. I still have real affection for these characters, and the film as a whole is a masterpiece. One of the best Coen bros. films.

While it may not be among the Coen Brothers' finest work, O Brother Where Art Thou is an intriguing and original viewing experience. It's a road movie like no other, based on the ultimate adventure story, The Odyssey. There's so much to like about the film - the plot is wacky, the soundtrack a wonderful mix of American folk, and the Great Depression-era world is inhabited by weird and wonderful characters (including George Clooney's verbally dexterous, pomade-haired scoundrel Everett - perhaps his finest on-screen role to date). The Coens give us a rollicking good time right until the end, when a silly finale and some disappointing narrative tie-ups and underwhelming character payoffs threaten to ruin our fun. As a whole though, it's a vastly entertaining film, and only a little shy of the top pantheon of Coen Brothers films.… Expand

I don't like coming out of a viewing of a film and feeling like I enjoyed it but knowing something is missing. What makes my experience of O Brother worse is that I cannot figure out why I didn't like it as much as I should have. The acting as always was stellar with George Clooney giving a performance that rivals some of his finest roles (Michael Clayton, Burn after Reading and Up in the Air) as Ulysses Everrett Mcgill a member of a chain gang who orchestrates a prison break so he can get back to his home town so he can regain some treasure in a valley due to be flooded. The Coen Brothers provide a great script that is even more quirky than some of there previous outings (The Hudsucker Proxy). The film pretty much has everything it needs to be a good Coen Brothers film with a great supporting cast including John Goodman and Holly Hunter, a great soundtrack and beautiful landscapes (even more so than True Grit). However O Brother doesn't seem like an original thought (and I don't mean because it was loosely based on The Odyssey by Homer). It just seems like the Coen brothers have what they see as a working formula to there films and with this they just followed the recipe with it being very easy to compare the film to there others. Sure I liked the film but this may be the reason I didn't love it. Or perhaps I still haven't figured it out yet.… Expand