Raising Arizona is a comedy from 1987 written and directed by the infamous Coen brothers. When it comes to comedies that they have created, right at the top of the list for their best is this film. Not only were the story and sub-plots original, but the way that they pulled off it off was borderline genius in my humble opinion. This is one of those films that did slip through the cracks with a lot of people though, because the selling points of the story weren't quite what you would call top notch. It did turn a nice profit though, and it has since made a lot of money in DVD sales and television appearances, so in the end you could view the film as both a critical and commercial success. A comedy that went out of the normal bounds of what was funny, I think it broke a lot of ground for films that are out now.

The premise of Raising Arizona, is that a couple cannot have children of their own. It came as a shock to them, and the leading lady had really hoped that she could have kids, feeling that she could be a great mother. When the couple sees that a family is having quintuplets the bright idea crosses their minds that they have enough kids that they wouldn't miss one. This is where they hatch an idea of kidnapping one of the children, and making it a member of their family. Not the best of ideas if you ask me, but they weren't really thinking through the end result. They wanted a baby, and there wasn't much that could be done to remove that thought. Wanting to provide for his wife, H.I. (called Hi) kidnaps one of the kids and brings it home to Edwina (Ed). From there everything starts to go awry as their lives start getting turned upside down.

With a kidnapped baby in their hands, they soon find themselves being tracked by a bounty hunter hired to retrieve the missing baby. Not only that, but friends of the family have broken out of jail, and are using their place to crash for a while. These aren't the best kind of friends to have around, and they just add more trouble to the situation. Amongst all of the dramatic undertones that the family has, is the Coen Brother's own brand of humor. They find a way to make every situation funny, and you almost end up cheering for this couple, even though you know they have done wrong by stealing the baby. One such memorable funny scene, is that after making a getaway from robbing a store, H.I. has to go back to pick up some huggies diapers that he had dropped in the escape. It is little things like that which really help propel this movie to something more than it could have been.

In the leads roles as the couple are Nicolas Cage and Holly Hunter in parts that surely made their careers. Looking back, this was the first instance where I got to know these actors, and it made me want to see more of their work. There were perfect as "white-trash" people from Arizona, who just wanted a chance to form a family. Only they go about things in entirely the wrong way. John Goodman is great as one of H.I.'s friends who has broken out of jail, and not to be out-done, Randall 'Tex' Cobb is good in the roll of the bounty hunter. The story isn't all about getting to a quick punch line, but rather depicts an uplifting story about a couple's journey to find what really makes them happy. The story is tied together by a very strong plot (odd for a comedy), and characters that are not only interesting, but intriguing to watch. Being able to enjoy a film like Raising Arizona on DVD is simply a treat, and this is a film I highly recommend purchasing for a home collection.













Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD