O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Question: The only way that the valley could be flooded by rampaging water is that a dam was broken up river. Otherwise the water rises very slowly. Does the movie explain this? If so I missed it. In which way was that river flooded?

Answer: Probably they have dismantled the coffer dam that was used while constructing the main dam. Hence, the flooding.

Good and reasonable last resort explanation - have the Coens ever addressed it?

Question: Is there a scene in the movie where we see Everett find the gold watch in the drawer while he is looking for a hairnet? It's not on the dvd and I am sure I have seen it. My family says they have never seen it so it's driving me crazy.

Answer: I too recall that scene.

Phixius Premium member

Answer: There is a scene like this, he ends up giving the watch to Pete and Pete puts 2 and 2 together and says "you stole from my kin" after they were all chased away by the law enforcement.

Answer: There is absolutely NO scene with him finding the watch.

Question: In the KKK scene, Homer Stokes says "The color guard is colored." Did he mean this literally, like Everett was a black man, or did he mean that he was white (unlikely because John Goodman is white and so is he), or is he mistaking Everett for a black man because of his dirty face?

Answer: He mistook Everett for a black man because of his dirty face. It's the only way the line makes sense.

J I Cohen

Question: The scene when the Ku Klux Klan are assembling is very similar to the scene in "The Wizard of Oz", when the scarecrow, the tin man and the cowardly lion sneak into the witch's castle. The marching music, the disguises and the way they enter the procession are almost identical. Was this intentional?

R W Hlavac

Chosen answer: Yes, it was.

jle

Question: What does the log mean that they carried Homer Stokes on out of the building?

Answer: Per Wikipedia: Riding the rail (also called being "run out of town on a rail") was a punishment most prevalent in the United States in the 18th and 19th centuries in which an offender was made to straddle a fence rail held on the shoulders of two or more bearers. The subject was then paraded around town or taken to the city limits and dumped by the roadside.

Brian Katcher

More for O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Mistakes

Continuity mistake: When they first meet George Nelson, the left back seat window is half way open. A few seconds after they get into his car, Delmar gives the machine gun to Nelson through the left back seat's completely open window (the camera shows the guys all the time so we can see that Delmar didn't lower the window when he got in the car). (00:32:25 - 00:33:40)

More mistakes in O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Quotes

Ulysses Everett McGill: What'd the devil give you for your soul, Tommy?
Tommy Johnson: Well, he taught me to play this here guitar real good.
Delmar O'Donnell: Oh son, for that you sold your everlasting soul?
Tommy Johnson: Well, I wasn't usin' it.

More quotes from O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Trivia

Trivia: Just like the classical Odysseus, Everett openly defies God, and has constant troubles because of it. The second he repents and asks for God's help he is saved from death and everything turns out OK.

Twotall

More trivia for O Brother, Where Art Thou?

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