The film was written by Joel and Ethan and is their second feature film, after their Sundance movie Blood Simple became a hit.  Why, in God’s name, they would choose to make this movie when so much hinged on it, is beyond me.  And that is why I am not in the moving making business.  Raising Arizona has a certified fresh rating of 89% on RottenTomatoes.com (although, it only received 50% approval from top critics–only six reviews counted).

I did not understand the humor for the most part.  The only actor who illicited an audible laugh was Holly Hunter, whom I thought was marvelous.  The rest of the cast, Nic Cage (technically this was the time he was using his entire first name), John Goodman, even Frances McDormand didn’t really do much for me.  Since I’ve seen all these actors in other films, and I’ve been quite pleased by their performances, I’d have to blame my dislike of the film on the script by the Coen brothers.  It’s simply not to my taste.  And when the bounty hunter, motorcycle man of death came on the scene, I pretty much mentally checked out.

I just didn’t get it.

I will say, that it took me three viewings to finally jump on board The Big Lebowski.  I don’t remember hating that film as much as this, but I will reserve final judgemental until I’ve seen Raising Arizona one more time.  Until then, I’m going to stick with the Coens’ dramas.

1 out of 4 stars

Paul Dano plays Brian, a 28-year-old struggling with his identity.  Get this: he works in a highend Swedish mattress store.  Quirky!  He falls for Happy (Zooey DesChanel), another mid-twenties kid who doesn’t know what she’s trying to get out of life.  Her dad is insane (played by John Goodman), and he enables her because (it seems), her mother (played by Kim Basinger) is a rich, but deadbeat drug addict.  Things get complicated when Brian is finally approved to adopt a baby from China, and throughout the film, there’s a strange hobo that follows him around, shooting him in the ankle and beating him up with lead pipes… So quirky.

DesChanel is hilarious, and this pigeonhole seems to fit her very well.  Dano can’t seem to get his face to do anything but look wounded and sad.  Goodman’s role is restricted to being a gigantic DB and doing quirky things like refusing to sit in cars, but instead, lays on a mattress in the back of his station wagon while others drive him around. All of the actors have proven themselves in earlier roles, so I’m guessing it’s the boring script by director Asleton and Adam Nagata that keeps any of the characters from being interesting or three dimensional.  Despite being a comedy, there were less than three laugh-out-loud moments.  A film this stagnant needs some resolution, but Gigantic refuses to give you any, so you’ll leave the theater completely ambivolent to what you just watched.  It’s better than, say, Obsessed, but still, Gigantic doesn’t have much to offer.

1.5 out of 4 stars