However, they must also match wits with the cunning and mysterious lawmen, Cooley, who tracks the men, bent on bringing the trio back to the prison farm. I split on them, but I do like O Brother. It's loosely based on the Odyssey. One of the fun things is noticing the connections, but don't get carried away with that, because they are just brief touches and the story really has some major differences from Homer's story. In fact, if you're a fan of Homer, you may be very upset if you go thinking you're going to see the Odyssey.
Religion permeates the film.
That makes sense since the gods are so central to the Odyssey. And there is praying and miracles. That they make it back to Everett's home could probably be seen as miraculous as Odysseus' return to Ithaca, but Everett is a skeptic. Later, when they've been caught and are about to be hung, Everett breaks out in a fervent prayer for forgiveness and deliverance. When the deliverance comes, he immediately returns to his skepticism.