Preview

O Brother Where Art Thou: Movie Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
619 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
O Brother Where Art Thou: Movie Analysis
The film O Brother Where Art Thou is cleverly and intelligently based on the famous Odyssey by the well-known Homer. There are quite a few distinctive differences though. While in the movie, Ulysses didn’t have any affairs, his wife did not wait patiently for him, he had six daughters, and each of his accompanying men stayed with him until the end of the journey. In the poem the setting was vastly unlike; Odysseus wasn’t an escaping criminal during the depression. Other than those and a few others, there were many parallel aspects, situations and relationships that had a resemblance to the Odyssey. In the epic poem Circe turns the men into animals, in the movie one of characters believe that his companion has been turned into a toad. Ulysses’ …show more content…
Ulysses is running away from the police who are out to catch him. Odysseus made this journey himself and isn’t running from anyone, though the gods cause him an awful amount of trouble. By the end of the poem, all of Odysseus’ men are dead and gone, while both of Ulysses’ friends make it with him until the very end of their journey. Though there are more men in the actual Odyssey, there is a level of loyalty in both these stories. The men stand behind their leaders, ready to help them with any crazy plan they come up with next. They do question their fearless leader but only once. The men are just as strong as Odysseus and Ulysses even if they aren’t as distinguished as them. There are corresponding characters and situations with both of these captivating tales. In Homer’s Odyssey, Circe turns sailors into various animals once they drink her honey-sweet wine. Odysseus comes to rescue and tricks her so that they are changed back into who they were before the transformation. In O Brother Where Art Thou, three women represent Circe and her nymphs. They start to seduce the men and have Ulysses drink the wine. Suddenly, the men wake up and one of them is yet to be found. However something is thumping from inside his empty clothes. A toad pops out and they tend to believe that the now vanished women had turned him into this

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    The movie Unbroken revolves around the life of US Olympian and athlete Louis "Louie" Zamperini. The film opens showing Louie flying as a bomb aimer of a United States Army Air Forces B-24 Liberator bomber, during an April 1943 bombing mission against the Japanese-held island of Nauru. The plane he is abroad becomes seriously damaged resulting in many of the crew members becoming fatally injured. The hydraulics of the plane are shot and damaged, but the pilot, Phil, manages to salvage the plane at the end of the runway due to a flat tire.…

    • 94 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mcmurphy breaking the picture window was a turning point in the story. The picture window was a prized possession of Nurse Ratched. It was the difference between her and the patients. She was on one side of the window while the patients were on the more unfortunate side. In a therapy session, R.P breaks the window, in the movie and in the novel, to get cigarettes. The glass breaking wasn't only a turning point in the story, but also for Mcmurphy. McMurphy became a larger than life character to the patients.…

    • 311 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In conclusion, while O Brother, Where Art Thou may have been based on the Odyssey by Homer it is almost completely Americanized. The film by the Coen brothers used the concept of the Odyssey to tell an American epic about the values that American culture holds above all others. The values shown are a part of the journey the trio makes and sometimes with the company of Tommy. By adhering to the values set by the American culture the trio advances toward their final goal, and are admired by those who share their values. In the end of O Brother, Where Art Thou is an American Odyssey with the final lesson of the epic being living a virtuous life will lead you to what you truly…

    • 127 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    “The Odyssey” is an epic poem, so it’s natural that it’s less realistic than “O Brother, Where Art Thou”. For example, in “The Odyssey”, Homer describes that Odysseus faces the Sirens who have the bodies of fish on their lower body and eat men (bad description of sirens). “O Brother, Where Art Thou” does have Sirens in the movie, although it is more realistic. The Sirens in the movie have beautiful voices and seduces men with it just like the Sirens in the epic poem. Though the difference is that the Sirens in the movie don’t have bodies of fish nor do they eat men.…

    • 566 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    For instance the Cyclops, the Sirens, the Lotus Eaters, and when he finally reaches Ithaca he finds the Suitors whom are trying to compete for his wife. In comparison to Odysseus ' journey and the obstacles he overcame, Ulysses ' character also faces some of the same challenges: The one-eyed Bible salesman resembles the Greek version of the Cyclops, the Sirens who are the same in both the text and the movie, the KKK which act like the natives on the Lotus Eaters Island, and his divorced wife Penny and her new husband resemble the struggle Odysseus encountered with the suitors. In contrast to these similar obstacles, we see that many of their challenges are handled differently. For example, both characters come across the Sirens, however, the actions that Odysseus takes are different then Ulysses. Intelligently, Odysseus and his crew stuffed their ears with bee 's wax in order to avoid temptation from the melodious sounds of the Sirens ' voices. On the other hand, Ulysses failed to reject the temptations of the Sirens, which led to the kidnapping of his friend…

    • 761 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In The Breakfast Club, there is an overwhelming idea of the future. The students only think about one week in advance before their Saturday detention. They never thought about what their actions could do to their future. For example, Brian did not seem to grasp that because he was so ready to kill himself over one failed assignment. He was thinking in the now and not in the future. A noticeable moral of this film is: Parents should actually raise their children. In this film, all of the parents have minimal screentime, but it is still evident that they totally suck. Claire’s parents use her as a tool of revenge against one another, and her parents fail to see the effect it has on her. Andrew’s parents push him too hard, and as a result he is…

    • 288 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Odyssey and O Brother Where Art Thou?, are very similar in describing what the society consisted of. They are many society groups and individuals that represent and characterise the Ancient Greek Mythology. These both stories describe men in search of a treasure and all the obstacles they have to comfort in able to obtain it. In The Odyssey and O Brother Where Art Thou? were written in a different era, but they both illustrate the Ancient Greek Mythology. Many would say that The Odyssey and O Brother Where Art Thou? are very different, however they both share the same concept just written in a different period of time.…

    • 415 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In O Brother Where Art Thou and Homer’s Odyssey the use of epic themes did not always parallel one another. The personality of the characters in the movie greatly affected whether the Greek’s upstanding views portrayed in the themes, such as loyalty, differed from the epic poem. In a comparable sense, the plots influenced whether the themes, like the homecoming, were similar in the movie and poem. However, the movie is by no means directly based upon the epic poem; you simply cannot view either without perceiving the connection between the uses of epic themes.…

    • 473 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Two men, though part of different stories, travel long journeys to return home. Their paths face many obstacles and trials. How do their stories compare? The main characters are Odysseus, from Homer’s, The Odyssey, and Everett from O Brother Where Art Thou, directed by Ethan and Joel Coen. Though O Brother Where Art Thou, is based on The Odyssey, the two share many similarities and differences, such as the characters’ encounters with others, conflicts faced in the stories, and characteristics of the major characters.…

    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    We are venturing again to Los Angeles this week where 1987 graduate, Corey Jackson, works as a film and television composer. After a movie is made, Corey meets with the director of the film to “spot” the film. This is the process of deciding where music should go in the film and what emotions the music should portray. After the spot, Corey writes the music for one scene at a time. Each composition is sent to the director for approval. Corey says that the director may like it the first time or may send it back with notes and suggestions for him to try again. “Once that is completed I, with the help of my team, will record, mix and deliver the music to the dubbing stage for final mix,” says Jackson. He also describes being on the set of a movie as not glamorous, contrary to what some may think. On a constant deadline, he says working is hard, time consuming, and challenging, but working with like minded people who all have the same ultimate goal and work ethic makes it easier.…

    • 489 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Odyssey and O’ Brother Where Art Thou both shared the same themes and personalities of characters, but what differed was the music. In the movie The Odyssey, the music was very drastic, or it had a very strong effect to it, and the music changed as the people’s feelings did. In O’ Brother Where Art Thou the music had a diverse tune, there were multiple songs with a happy meaning behind it which reflected the character’s moods. The music helped develop the plot of film in both films because of the emotion and the characters’ personalities shown in the book or movie.…

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In this scene in the book, Odysseus is woken up by Nausicaa’s maids playing in the river. When he comes out of the bushes and the maids take sight of him, they are frightened and they run away from him. They do this most likely because he is a foreign stranger and they are unfamiliar with him. They are also frightened because Odysseus appears out of the bushed naked.…

    • 316 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Movie Analysis: Doubt

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Sister James and Sister Aloysius play a very important role in John Patrick Shanley’s movie Doubt, which is about the mistrust that takes place in a school directed by the church on priest Flynn command. There, sister Aloysius is the principal, so she is in charge of the student’s rights and responsibilities. On the other hand Sister James is a history teacher. Both characters are important for their way of handling the doubt.…

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Odysseus: A Hero

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Odysseus performs many deeds that include bravery and stealth to protect others and himself. Odysseus defeats all of his wife’s suitors that had gathered while he was gone. “While…

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    My Sister’s Keeper is a movie that introduces the world to the Fitzgerald family with its countless imperfections. The family carries some guilt when it comes to their youngest daughter Anna; who was genetically created to donate things such as blood and bone marrow to her older sister Kate, who has cancer. With tears and laughs, the film, My Sister’s Keeper, captured thousands of hearts across America with its incredible acting, capturing introduction, flash-back imagery and shady realness.…

    • 366 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics