fallen robber as he falls from the bridge, replacing the goods train used in the original 1955 British film classic. The gag of the portrait changing expressions is taken from Preston Sturges' film Sullivan's Travels (1941). In an early adventure, Sullivan (Joel McCrea) escapes the advances of a sexually aggressive widow (Almira Sessions) by making a rope out of his bed sheet. The portrait of the late husband is duly shocked. In the original The Ladykillers, a photograph of the late captain "at the salute" is seen. Two of the Coens' previous films, Intolerable Cruelty and O Brother, Where Art Thou?, were also heavily influenced by Sturges. The garbage barge and garbage island miniatures were produced and developed by New Deal Studios. Filming locations The film was primarily shot in Natchez, Mississippi, USA and Colonial Street. Reception The Ladykillers received mixed reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 54% based on reviews from 192 critics, with an average rating of 6.10/10. The site's consensus states: "Hanks' performance in the lead role is inspired, but this is a relatively minor offering from the Coen brothers." On Metacritic the film has a score of 56/100 based on reviews from 40 critics. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade C on scale of A to F. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 2.5 out of 4, and wrote: "Not content to be funny, it wants to be FUNNY!" He praised Hall's performance as the most successful in the film, but said the other roles "are over-the-top in a way rarely seen outside Looney Tunes." Soundtrack While Carter Burwell composed the film score for The Ladykillers, continuing his long-time collaboration with the Coen Brothers, much of the soundtrack is devoted to African American gospel music. The film's executive music producer was T Bone Burnett, who had previously worked with the Coens in sourcing soundtrack music for The Big Lebowski and O Brother, Where Art Thou?. The soundtrack does not actually contain any pieces of Renaissance music. Similar to his work on O Brother, Burnett chose a mix of vintage songs by Blind Willie Johnson, The Soul Stirrers, Swan Silvertones and Bill Landford & The Landfordaires, along with recordings of contemporary black gospel artists, including Donnie McClurkin, Rose Stone, Bill Maxwell and church choirs, made especially for the film soundtrack. Hip hop songs by Nappy Roots