Intermission: Coens' latest not their greatest, but worth seeing

"O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

Directed by: Joel Coen

Starring: George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson

Rated: PG-13

When someone gets around to writing the history of film from the 1980s through the turn of the millennium, there will be an entire chapter (or maybe even a whole book) devoted to Joel and Ethan, the Coen bothers.

Since they turned the film noir genre on its ear in 1984 with their debut, "Blood Simple," the Coens' collective body of work is nothing short of amazing, if somewhat eccentric.

"Raising Arizona" was a very askew black comedy. "Miller's Crossing," one of the team's most visually stunning pieces of work, took a fresh look at the gangster film.

With their masterpiece "Fargo," the brothers finally got the commercial and Oscar recognition they deserve.

Even their lesser films ("Hudsucker Proxy," "Barton Fink") are better made and more fun to watch than most things coming out of Hollywood on a regular basis.

Which brings us to the Coens' latest effort, "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" While not at the top of my favorite Coen brothers film list, it's still very much worth a view. Individually the scenes and setups are all cleverly conceived and flawlessly executed. On the whole, however, the film seems to lack the sort of cohesive storyline that could bring the disparate scenes together.

What seems to be the glue here is the fantastic soundtrack, produced by T Bone Burnett, that features mountain music and the bluegrass tunes of the Stanley Brothers.

The Stanleys never got quite as well-known as Bill Monroe, but aficionados will tell you they are a huge influence on the development of the style. Also featured (in the opening credits) is the greatest "hobo" song of all time, Haywire Mac's "Big Rock Candy Mountain."

The Coens' eccentric sense of humor found them informing viewers during the opening moments of "Fargo" that the film was based on a true story. They later recanted that position. Much is the same here. "O Brother" claims to be based on Homer's "The Odyssey." In recent interviews, Joel and Ethan have admitted they've never actually read the epic. The title, "O Brother, Where Art Thou?," however, comes from Preston Sturges' "Sullivan's Travels," a work with which the Coens are no doubt quite familiar.

George Clooney, Coen mainstay John Turturro and Tim Blake Nelson are three Depression era convicts who, chained together, escape from a prison road gang. Thus begins their own personal Odyssey.

Clooney's character is even named Ulysses Everett McGill, though most people call him Everett.

The first stop is at Pete's (Turturro) cousin's house. After cuz undoes the boys' chains and feeds them, he informs the authorities they're holed up in his barn. Reward money, in the Depression at least, is thicker than blood.

After a narrow escape, the trio go through a series of close calls, trials and tribulations.

Along the way they meet up with a Robert Johnson (father of the Delta blues) type character who has just sold his soul to the devil; a Bible salesman who is a member of the Klan, the blind owner of a radio station; various Huey P. Long-inspired politicians; Baby Face Nelson; three lovely sirens and finally Everett's ex-wife and seven daughters.

At the radio station, accompanied by the guitar man, they cut a version of "Man of Constant Sorrow" under the moniker The Soggy Bottom Boys. The record becomes a huge hit, but the Soggys remain a mystery. No one realizes it's a group of escaped cons on the run. The boys themselves are unaware of the record's popularity.

When the sirens turn Pete into a toad (not everyone involved believes this) things seem to take a turn for the worse.

All of the scenes, most notably the Busby-Berkeley-inspired Ku Klux Klan rally, are delightful to behold. It just seems that the Coens weren't quite sure where to go with the whole affair. Or maybe it all fits together perfectly for them, but the rest of us aren't on the same wavelength. No matter, "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" is still worth seeing. If you like music from the heart and soul, you'll probably want to stop by and pick up the soundtrack on your way home from the theater.

(Jim Wunderle works at Associated Video Producers and is a Springfield free-lance writer and musician.)