(Originally written August 29, 2007)

There is a point when I was watching this film that I wanted to throw something at the screen. The introduction to the film is rushed, overlong, and uninteresting. It works merely as an exposition, not as something interesting to watch. It fails to appropriately develop the characters, and it is mostly unmemorable. One thing that makes this film so hard to like is the fact that all of the characters are absolutely obnoxious and unlikable for the good majority of the film. They are bad people, have little regard for anything including themselves, and they come across as subhuman. Nicholas Cage’s H.I. McDonnough is pathetic, and there is no ability for the audience to actually feel sorry for what’s happening to him. There is no development of warmth between H.I. and Ed, played by Holly Hunter, so it is difficult to develop an interest in the troubles of their marriage if the marriage itself is something unworthy of interest. It would also be appropriate to mention the fact that this film is a comedy and is not particularly funny. The Coen brothers are known for their unique sense of humor, but they become so wrapped up in their eccentricities that this film becomes distant and unfunny. They are bizarre for the sake of bizarre, and that, in and of itself, does not translate into creativity.

Raising Arizona, however, does have its moments, and these all take place when the characters shut up. One of the absolute best scenes in the film is a sequence set off when H.I. tries to rob a convenience store of diapers for the baby he and Ed have kidnapped. With an innocent old man in a truck, a disgruntled store clerk, running dogs, a disappointed wife, police in pursuit, and bullets flying all over the place, it is a set piece that is clever in the way the different components come together. The writing and filmmaking in this scene actually has a pulse, which is a pleasant surprise considering the other moments in the film. Another highlight of the film is a bizarre Road Warrior character and his violent ways, killing any living creature in its path. The character’s actual integration into the context of the story is rough, but the character makes for some of the most memorable visual gags of the film, including a rabbit being blown into pieces by a grenade. The action sequences in the film are a breath of fresh air in this otherwise difficult-to-watch film, preventing this film from being completely terrible.