Now, you have to know first of all that Otter likes podcasts. A lot. And has several she listens to semi-religiously, which means that every so often she hears a bunch of them in a row to catch up. And one such was NPR's Movie podcast, which not only has so-so reviews (never as good as mine, of course) but also has interviews with filmmakers. And one of these podcasts included someone (I'm not sure who, truthfully) who went on and on about Preston Sturges.

I, of course, had heard of Preston Sturges, but had not, to my knowledge, seen any of his movies.

Then the interviewee said the thing that made my little pointed ears prick up. He was talking about this movie, where a filmmaker wants to make a movie that speaks to the common man, and tries to become one (and this is at the very tail end of the Depression, so he's basically becoming a hobo) to understand them and their problems and what they would want to see in a movie.

And the name of the film that this filmmaker wishes to make?

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

OMG.

So I went home and relayed this information to Mr. Otter, who is as big a fan of the Coen Brothers movie as I am. Really? said Mr. Otter. I saw that movie years ago, but I had no idea that was the mame of the movie Sullivan was trying to make.

So I put it in my Netflix queue, and this last week, up it popped. Right after Fullmetal Alchemist and before the really cheesy movies I've reserved for the New Year's Day Videofest.

And we watched it. And I was completely charmed.

Joel McCrea plays Sullivan, the rich director who is trying to find out what the common man thinks and feels. Veronica Lake, much better in this than the last thing I saw her in plays the movie-star wannabe who is about to leave town and go home, not having made it as an actress. They are excellent, and there are other actors who we love (like Eric Blore) who have small roles here.

This is a Capra-esque screwball comedy, with all the silliness and hilarity, but also the genuine good feeling, that goes with that style of filmmaking. And if you love O Brother Where Art Thou, you will see all kinds of things in this film that the Coens used in theirs, which made it even more fun.

This movie was a joy to watch, and I think I may have to own it...I'm pretty sure that seeing it once, or even twice, isn't enough.