O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Over my time in school, I studied Homer’s Illiad and Odyssey on about six different occasions. When I first discovered O Brother Where Art Thou? in high school, Homer and I had already been well acquainted.  To set the story of Odysseus’ long journey home in the depression stricken south was an odd stroke of genius that really works, because in some ways, the old south is as gone and mythical as ancient Greece.

The story follows Everett (George Clooney), a man who is often too smart for his own good.  He escapes from a chain gang, still attached to two other men, Pete (John Turturro) and Delmar (Tim Blake Nelson).  Everett needs to get home to stop his wife from marrying another man.  Instead of the truth, he tells Pete and Delmar that he needs to get the money he stole that landed him in jail before the land is flooded, promising each man a share.  The three are set on a long, dangerous journey filled with interesting characters, misadventures and close calls comparable to scenes in The Odyssey.  There’s an old soothsayer, treacherous sirens along the river and even a cyclops.

Much in the same way Homer depicts Greece having a change in cultural values, the Coen brothers show a shift as the deep south emerges from the depression.  The embrace of radio as mass communication is slowly connecting the rural south.  Another level of connectivity is on the way, electricity.  And the KKK seems to be losing its power and influence, especially after Everett and the gang crash a meeting.

The music is one of my favorite things about this film.  The old timey soundtrack send us back to a simpler time.  Growing up on country music, I find this soundtrack perfect and T Bone  Burnett’s finest work.  I am a Man of Constant Sorrow is one of my favorite songs and you can regularly find me rocking out to it in my car.

O Brother was rightly nominated for the Oscar for best cinematography.  The film has a near sepia tone, old and as if the colors had faded into the dustbowl, that suits the setting perfectly.  Most shots aren’t too artistic, but focus perfectly on our actors.  Really, it’s simple, honest, and faultless.  Plus, that underwater moment is really unforgettable, hound dog and all.

Best of all, this film is really funny.  Most jokes are a little deadpan and need an outside audience to get them.  Seeing Clooney in a hair net repeating, “Damn, we’re in a tight spot,” is hilarious.  Delmar’s love for animals, to the point of mistaken identity gets me every time.  Many times the dialogue is spot on with bits of quick humor.  One of my favorite scenes is when Everett is reunited with three of his daughters: “Kablooey. Nothin’ left but a grease spot on the L&N.” “Damn it, I wasn’t hit by any train!”

O Brother Where Art Thou? is easily my favorite film by the Coen brothers (thus far).  The fact that it was only nominated for two Oscars (adapted screenplay and cinematography) breaks my heart.  I recommend it to everyone, but a few people especially.  If you love The Odyssey or just want to see a different version of it, you have got to see this.  If you grew up with tall tales of life in the old south, you may find a few details from your elders.  And if you enjoy classic country or bluegrass music, you’ll at least be hooked by the soundtrack.

“You shall see thangs, wonderful to tell.  You shall see a… a cow… on the roof of a cotton house, ha.  And, oh, so many startlements.”

Of Mice and Men

First off, I cannot discuss Of Mice and Men without giving away some major plot spoilers, you deserve fair warning.  Second, I want to encourage everyone to read the book by John Steinbeck before seeing the film, I feel it only enhances the experience.  Besides, it’s a pretty thin book, not like I’m sending you out to read War and Peace.

In the midst of the depression, two migrant workers stick together as they move from job to job.  George (Burgess Meredith) takes care of his large and strong but mentally slow partner, Lennie (Lon Chaney Jr.) out of a promise to Lennie’s mother.  While Lennie is a good worker, he gets in trouble easily, which sends the duo on the run and searching for a new job constantly.  Through their hard times, George dreams aloud with Lennie about owning their own piece of land they can farm and keep the profits for themselves where they can be safe and content and Lennie can tend the rabbits.  Before starting their new job on a new ranch, George prepares Lennie as best as he can, planning a place to meet just in case he gets in trouble, again.

At the ranch, there seems to be a good mix of obstacles to avoid and opportunities for a better life.  Most of the men are accommodating and understand that Lennie is a gentle giant.  Then there’s Curley (Bob Steele), a mean spirited small man who likes to pick on whichever man is biggest, but messing with Lennie is never a smart move.  Curley’s wife (Betty Field) is nothing but trouble as well.  As the rest of the men bond and hear about George and Lennie’s dream, some of the men suggest to pool their savings together.  Suddenly, the dream seems attainable, but the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.

As far as film adaptations of this work goes, I find this to be my favorite.  The focus of the story is to be on the men, their comradery and the tensions between them, and it is.  The acting is wonderful, I especially enjoyed Lon Chaney Jr.’s portrayal of Lennie.  As far as the sets and visual effects go, everything is up to par, in a smart but conservative manner.  This isn’t a story that needs many frills, so the film doesn’t have many either, I think it works perfectly.

My first experience studying Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men was one of the first times I had to critically argue about a work of literature.  I was a high school senior, and for the past twelve years my teachers had been content letting me be the quiet thinker, but not this term.  Once this teacher knew from my papers that I could understand some deeper ideas found within literature, she began to call on me constantly.  Reluctant at first, I discussed the symbolism in poetry and some social ideas presented in Huck Fin that had my peers grasping at straws.  By the time we got to Of Mice and Men, I had learned to play devil’s advocate pretty well.

Now, trying to intellectually discuss Of Mice and Men with some teenage girls can be a headache, even if you’re a teenage girl yourself.  I’ll never forget the hour of class spent arguing about Lennie’s end with a few classmates who decided the whole world could have turned to sunshine and rainbows if only Lennie was allowed to live.  After trying to explain how the story is full of partnerships that have to split apart for the greater good and illustrate that Lennie’s fate was more humane than that of the dog, the only argument they ever used was simply, “killing is wrong.”  At some point, I exasperated something along the lines of, “This is a piece of literature, not a trial.”  I never expected to be so thankful for such a long day in literature class, but I find myself thinking back to it when some heated discussions arise on this blog.  Thankfully, all my readers who leave comments are much more insightful people who make fun and intelligent arguments.

“Look across that river, cause I’m gonna tell you like you can almost see it.”

Seabiscuit

The beginning of Seabiscuit paints a perfect image of America from the invention of the automobile, the progress of the assembly line, through the roaring twenties and then plunging into the devastation of the depression.  The idea of people packing what’s left of their lives in their car, their last possession, the very invention that changed the world within their lifetime, never made such an impact on me until I saw it all connected in Seabiscuit.  Right away, I knew this would be more than an inspirational horse story.

In the depression, everyone is down, especially the people surrounding the infamous horse.  Red Pollard (Tobey Maguire) is from a large family, but during the depression they were financially ruined and left Red to reach for this potential to become a jockey.  Problem is, Red is too tall to be a jockey, so he purges regularly to maintain weight.  He also falls into a rough lifestyle, participating in illegal boxing matches for money.  Charles Howard (Jeff Bridges)  has built himself up from a humble bicycle repairman to the most successful car salesman in California, but when he suddenly loses his only son, his life and marriage crumbles.  Then there is Tom Smith (Chris Cooper), a horse trainer who has lived a very simple life among wild mustangs, but realizes his world is shrinking.  He’s the one who first sees potential in Seabiscuit.

From previews, we assume the challenge is for Seabiscuit to win races and prove everyone he’s the little horse with a big jockey who could.  There’s so much more than that and the whole downtrodden feel of the depression only amplifies the sense of victory.  There is a point where it seems like Red and Seabiscuit are on top of the world, but when tragedies occur there’s more to fight for than winning.   Yes, double trouble to put both jockey and horse in traction, I was nearly heartbroken.

It’s impossible not to see how Red’s and Seabiscuit’s young lives parallel each other.  They both have been trained or breaded for great potential, but never given the chance to succeed.  Red was well educated and loved, but now has a good amount of abandonment issues and has to fight harder than most jockeys because of his size.  When Seabiscuit’s story is told, in sort of a storybook feel, we learn that he was bread to be a race horse, but is too small.  Instead he is trained to lose to other horses in order to build their self esteem.  When he is finally raced, he loses, just as he was trained to.

I found myself getting really into the races.  The rhythm of hooves thundering flinging dirt, the rivalries that start in the gate and intensify until the photo finish.  The mix of closeup images and quick editing help make every race extremely exciting.  I found myself cheering on Seabiscuit from my couch half the time.

If you’ve got a little girl going through her pony phase, this may not be the best film for her.  Her childhood fantasies may be filled with rainbows, tea parties and braiding the horses mane.  Seabiscuit is a horse so beaten down by the world, he’s just pissed and wants an opportunity.  I doubt a little girl would really understand or appreciate that.  And later in the film, she may just cry knowing how badly her precious pony is hurt.  It’s rated PG-13 with good reason.

“You know, you don’t throw a whole life away just ’cause he’s banged up a little.”

Bound for Glory

This film is an biopic of Woody Guthrie, but captures the essence of the Great Depression and shows a spirit that helped so many people through such a tough time.

In 1936 Woody (David Carradine), his wife and two small daughters live in Texas.  He does work now and then as a sign painter, but he never looks for real steady work.  He seems to have an artists mentality and wants to work more for the satisfaction of helping others, rather than money.  After the huge dust storm sweeps through town, one by one people start to leave.  With talk that California is full of jobs, Woody departs as well, leaving his family behind.

The road west is long and unwelcoming.  Woody hitchhikes for a while and then hops aboard trains, but each as their risks.  If you get caught riding the rails, it’s back to walking and hitchhiking again.  And the Arizona desert isn’t very forgiving.

Along the way, Woody pairs up with a young family, traveling from one plantation to the other looking for picking jobs.  The camps setup outside the plantations are such a sad sight, people of all ages are stuck in a dusty limbo and of the thousands willing to work, only about thirty are picked every day and their pay is pitiful.

One day at the camp, a man with a guitar shows up and starts rallying the people, urging them to form a union.  This is Ozark Bule (Ronny Cox), he sings songs to boost the camps moral half the night, but is run off by the plantation bosses.  When he has to flee, Ozark takes Woody with him to record his songs.

Well, it’s been over an hour into the film, and we finally get to Woody’s folk singing career.  That may bother some people, but in order to understand the importance of Woody’s career, we need to see where he’s been and what is happening all around him.  The journey is much more important than the destination.

Anyway, so Woody starts recording, making good money and brings his family out west now that he can finally support them.  But the radio bosses won’t let him sing anything about the Dust Bowl, poor fruit pickers or anything to do with the hard times he came from.  Somewhere along the line Woody will have to decide if he’s a musician for the money or for the people.

The film won Best Music and Best Cinematography.  The way the film is shot gives it a kinda foggy look or vintage feel, like old photographs of your grandparents.  I really enjoyed it though, it makes the film feel authentic, but not gritty.  It’s like the sun is hazing through the dust that has never settled.

Bound for Glory is very enjoyable if you’re up for something that feels like The Grapes of Wrath with a folk music story.  The thing to remember is that the story comes first and the music is secondary, but I think that’s the way to go with this film.  It has its priorities straight.

“Don’tcha ever get embarrassed that you have so much when so many people have nothing?”