Raising Arizona

Year: 1987

Grade: A-

Country: USA

Director: Coen

Review

the only way this film isn’t unique is if you compare it to other coen brothers films. i still have to pick fargo as their masterpiece, but this one is great, without a doubt. the first ten minutes of the film is voice-over setting the scene, and it’s all very quickly paced storytelling. during this sequence there are some great shots – either because they look funny, or because they look artistic. nicholas cage looks great in this film. he’s so perfect for this role. holly hunter is also great in her role. the coens, like all great directors, are able to consistently get career best performances from their actors. i’m not necessarily saying that cage and hunter had their best performances in this film (though their performances here are at the top of their respective lists), but i do think it’s true for many of the secondary actors in their films. the coens are somehow able to capture their (diverse) settings remarkably well. in this film it’s arizona, obviously, in the big lebowski it’s l.a., in fargo it’s north dakota, in ladykillers it’s the south, etc. barry sonnenfeld’s cinematography in this film almost steals the show. the wide angle lens makes the frame really active and it works to great comic effect. a pleasure.