O brother where art thou

“O BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU?” is quite easily the funniest film of the past year, and even more impressive, it offers George Clooney’s best performance so far!  The Coen Brothers have based their film loosely, and we mean very loosely on Homer’s “The Odyssey”.  Clooney stars as Everett McGill, whom breaks free from a chain gang along with two other prisoners at the film’s beginning.  Even in the opening moments, audiences are given a terrific example of just how talented Clooney is at comedy.  Sure he’s got the crucial timing down, but more importantly, he’s got that special charisma necessary to pull what he does here.  While Everett may seem kind of blah on paper, Clooney gives him real dimension here!  There’s just so much to this character that is brought out by Clooney that it’s really a crime he wasn’t nominated for an Oscar! No kidding!   Clooney’s escapee sidekicks offer their share of great moments as well, and while John Tuturro is always competent, Tim Blake Nelson almost steals the show as the dimwitted Delmar, perhaps the greatest idiot to grace the silver screen.   While many critics felt the film’s plot was aimless, this reviewer felt it had a well-constructed plot, though focusing on character more than content.  After all, even in “The Odyssey” characters such as the Cyclops and the Sirens stood out more than the time span of the story.  One example of the Coen Brothers’ ingenuity is having a one-eyed Klansman fill the role of the villainous Cyclops.  Set during the depression era, the score reflects the mid-west sensibilities of the time, and it offers the three convicts a chance to actually find stardom and security as they use their singing talents to earn some quick cash as “The Soggy Bottom Boys”, offering one of the film’s funniest moments, as well as a really likeable song! 

BUENA VISTA has presented the film with its proper 2.35:1 aspect ratio and 16:9 enhancement.  The transfer is flawless!  There’s great detail and depth in every single image!   The color values are solid, offering vibrant hues and clarity to the compositions.  Fleshtones appear natural throughout and the contrast is outstanding with deep blacks and grays!  Even with the vibrant colors, there’s never a hint of oversaturation. 
BUENA VISTA is also continuing their welcome habit of offering both the Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 mix in the same presentation.  The atmospheric effects are virtually non-stop in this mix, whereas “surround” action effects are minimal.  While the surrounds don’t get a noticeable workout, this is a well-conceived surround mix.  The mix manages to engulf the viewer during the course of the film and it does its job well in bringing the viewer into the film’s own environment! 

Both the Dolby Digital and DTS mixes are wonderful, but the DTS offers a slight improvement in terms of clarity and bass.  This also becomes more obvious during the film’s musical segments.  While both mixes are significantly more lively during these sections, the DTS version offers a more striking display of surround effects here. 

BUENA VISTA HOME ENTERTAINMENT has offered several supplementary segments for this release.  The best is “PAINTING WITH PIXELS”.  In this segment, we learn that the Coens achieved the look for the film that they wanted via digital enhancement!  In this process, we are shown how the actual film is put into a computer for digital effects prior to being transferred back to film.  It’s an outstanding and insightful segment, allowing aspiring filmmakers to get a better understanding of what goes into creating a film in more ways than typically imagined or understood! 

“PRODUCTION FEATURETTE” offers some promotional footage, mostly consisting of interviews, and footage exploring how the film was made.  This section is mildly entertaining but typical of an electronic presskit!

”STORYBOARD/SCENE COMPARISON” is a segment allowing for one to examine the storyboard process by viewing the storyboard/scene comparisons of “The Flood” and “The Klan” segments.  One has the option via the “angle” option to view either the actual scene, the storyboard, or both together on a screen split from top to bottom.  The music video to “Man of Constant Sorrow” and the theatrical trailer are also included!