Raising Arizona (DVD)

by Brian.

There are two kinds of people in this world: Those that like Coen Brothers movies, and those that don't. Within the realm of those that do, the Best of theirs is split again into seven equally large camps devoted to each of their films to date. I've met at least one person from each camp, and cannot dispute their ethos. Each film is genius in a different gem, so picking your favorite is choosing between rubies and emeralds. Although my current favorite is probably 'The Big Lebowski', I cannot deny my love for their others. Today, since I finally picked it up, I will be praising the film 'Raising Arizona', and condemning the DVD to hell.

It's quirky, it's light, it's sharp, it's aromatic, it's fast, and it's absurd. It's a portrait of Arizona white trash. It's radical, it's fantasical, and most importantly, it's hilarious. Of course I'm talking about 'Raising Arizona', starring Nicholas Cage (when he was still acting) and Holly Hunter (speaking, with clothes on). It's been a favorite of mine for a long time, and rightfully so. What I love most about this film is the general acceptance of the ridiculous that every character exhibits. Cage's character H.I. McDunnough, after being thrown onto a lawn through the windshield of a truck that's being chased by the police, a Dirty Harry Stop-Mart worker, and a gang of suburban canines, simply stands up and thanks the truck driver for the ride. Hunter, playing McDunnough's wife, sees her husband robbing the Stop-Mart, gets mad and drives away, not surprised at all by his actions. The whole film is filled with acceptance of the absurd: a missing quintuplet left in the middle of the road, a gnarled spawn of satan with a penchant for blowing up small animals hunting the baby down, two hardened cons on the run forming love for this baby after stealing it from his original kidnappers. It's played straight because it doesn't have to act funny. One can't help but laugh.

The good people at Fox however, are obviously not in the laughing mood. Why else would the package this precious amethyst in a greasy to-go bag and throw it into the gutter? The widescreen transfer is horrible (although at least it's widescreen), the "bonus features" consist of interactive menus, a theatrical trailer which looks even worse than the film (if that's possible), TV spots for "coming soon to DVD" favorites 'Miller's Crossing' and 'Barton Fink' (we're still waiting here), and a few subtitles.

Fox has had a long reputation as being evil in the DVD community. They were the last to officially announce support for the medium, their titles are always bare bones at ridiculously inflated prices, and their release schedule is pitiful. Someone must be trying (the Fight Club, Abyss, and Independence Day discs were great) but the vast majority of titles just plain sucks. This is no exception. DVD is supposed to be a pinnacle of quality, yet I find this disc to be barely on par with VHS (at least I don't have to rewind it). This should not be so!

Re-release this film, along with the other six Coen gems, in a box set soon, because Coen fans are like Tori Amos fans and Soul Coughing fans in their loyalty, and one of these days we will revolt.

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