Review of Raising Arizona (1987) by Melvin W — 01 Jul 2012

H.I.: Biology and the prejudices of others conspired to keep us childless. .

"A Comedy Beyond Belief".

I just watched Raising Arizona for the second time and I have to say, I like it much more the second time around. The craziness of the Coen script makes for a great re-watchability factor. This was also the first Coen comedy, and one that brought with it many marriages. It isn't my favorite Coen film. Not even close. But it is a so dumb it's smart movie. The Coen's are pure genius and that's all that is on display here.

A couple composed of an ex-con and a cop find out they can't have children. When adoption doesn't work either, they come up with a radical idea. They decide to take one of the Arizona quintuplets. They do so and live like a real family, until two of Hi's old buddies show up after breaking out of prison. The whole plot is rather wacky and the movie as a whole is so bizarre it's amazing. They've made better comedies since, like The Big Lebowski and The Hudsucker Proxy, but Raising Arizona is good sophomore effort from the Coen's. .

Honestly, I just love watching Coen films. They're a certain amount of pleasure I take from watching their films, that I don't get from any other filmmaker. It may be the bizarre situations they come up with and randomly throw in throughout their plots. It may be characters that aren't cliches. It my be amazing production value that doesn't overshadow story. I just can't say enough about the Coen's. .

If you want to see early Coen, but still good Coen, look no further. This was a foreshadowing of Miller's Crossing, Fargo, and all the rest of their masterpieces. I thought their career got off to a bit of a slow start with their debut, but this one rocketed it forward. The cast is splendid, and the Coen's make full use of them.