The Ladykillers is a fatally schizophrenic film. It relies on a constant juxtaposition of the subtle and the overly absurd and in so doing, creates more spectacle than humor.

Ladykillers dives into a Southern world that’s simultaneously modern and antiquitous. Tom Hanks acts like he’s from the fifties or earlier while Marlon Waynas is as modern in his language as possible. The music quickly reminds you of O Brother, Where Art Thou? But that’s where the similarities end.

While Brother moves fluidly and beautifully though the South, Ladykillers keeps us locked in the wine cellar. Professor G.H. Dorr (Tom Hanks) is a refined, educated criminal who delivers a plan to rob a casino through an underground tunnel via Mrs. Irma P. Hall’s cellar. In the process, the professor involves Gawain MacSam (Marlon Wayans), a foul-mouthed brother who’s constantly undermining the civil rights beliefs of Garth Pancake (J.K. Simmons), an eccentric handyman. Lump (Ryan Hudson), a failed football player is so over-the-top dumb it fails to be funny and the General (Tzi Ma), is a Chinese veteran who’s very presence is fairly funny.

The Ladykillers takes turns going from belly-hurting funny to scenes that fail to draw even an inner smile. The centerpiece and saving grace is Tom Hanks, who plays what is likely the funniest role he’s ever played. His snickering laugh and drawn out speeches always draw a smile. But when he’s not on the screen, you miss him.

A lot of the jokes seem good on paper, but just never play out. Garth’s 50-something girlfriend, named Mountain Girl (Diane Delano) is a funny idea in retrospect, but it doesn’t draw as many laughs in the moment. The humor is classically Coen-esque, however. As usual, we get strange characters in stranger situations and even some random, comic deaths (including one repeat from Intolerable Cruelty). Basically, there’s a lot of stuff that’s “funny” but not nearly as much that’s actually funny.

The Ladykillers is still an enjoyable experience. Even when I wasn’t laughing, I was amused by all the crazyness. Going from the professor’s mellifluent speeches to Gawain hip-hop rantings in a single scene provides for a contrasting juxtaposition of tones. Much in the same way, we go from a church house out of O Brother to a casino out of Ocean’s Eleven. Though it’s certainly stylistic, I think the primary purpose for this contrast is simply humor. Granted, it’s Coen humor, but it’s still amusing.

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