New Delhi, July 24 -- Odysseus was vain.

The hero of Greek myth was an egotistical warrior obsessed with glory, a trickster with an irresponsible love for his own byline. Never regarded the finest fighter, he was the wiliest. In the Coen Brothers masterpiece O Brother, Where Art Thou?, George Clooney plays Ulysses Everett McGill, who frequently risks death and incarceration just to get the right brand of pomade for his hair. Even as a convict, he meticulously puts a hairnet over his head each night. This fox isn't superheroic but silver-tongued, talking himself in and out of trouble. Odysseus is all cunning.

With Christopher Nolan's ponderous adaptation of Homer's epic poem currently in theatres, the timing is ideal to salute Joel and E...