Warner Bros. | 1993 | 140 mins. | Not Rated
I’ve been sitting here trying to come up with a clever way to describe Arizona Dream. In the end, I’ve decided it’s just one of those strange little films that probably deserved to be seen by more people than it was. Now, since the cast includes a young Johnny Depp, and Warner Brothers has made it available via its Archives Collection, perhaps more people will see it. Arizona Dream was directed by Emir Kusturica, a Yugoslavian, who’s Time of the Gypsies (1989) won the best director award at Cannes. It was on the heels of that triumph that Kusturica was given what would turn out to be his only real shot at Hollywood success.
Johnny Depp plays a young man named Axel who travels with his friend Paul (Vincent Gallo) from New York City to a small town in Arizona so that he can be the best man at the wedding of his Uncle Leo (Jerry Lewis), an eccentric used car salesman, set to marry the beautiful, and much younger Millie (Paulina Porizkova) his wife. Axel’s happy to be in town for the wedding, but wants to head back to New York as soon as the ceremony is over. He loves his job as a fish counter in New York harbor: “Most people think I count fish, but I don’t. I listen to their dreams.”
Axel’s plans change when he meets two women. The first is a middle-aged flirter named Elaine (Faye Dunaway), who clearly hasn’t accepted her age. Second, is her stepdaughter Grace (Lili Taylor), a suicidal copper heiress, who always takes and plays her accordion wherever she goes. Axel soon becomes involved with Elaine, who is old enough to be his mother. The two spend a lot of time trying to go up in flying machines that Axel constructs for her. For some unknown reason, the machines keep getting destroyed. Predictably, the prime suspect is the troubled Grace, but there is always the possibility of another culprit.
Like all of Kustrica’s pictures, Arizona Dream is defined by surreal images and long, dream-like montages, which have little to do with the central narrative. But then again, there really is no central plot, there’s no specific event that happens—the dialogue is quirky and doesn’t follow a set logic. However, the he richly detailed set design and mesmerizing visuals compensate for the various narrative shortcomings, making this a bizarre, yet strangely enjoyable cinematic experience.
Most of the actors do a good job with the unconventional material. Only Jerry Lewis seems a bit uncomfortable (I’m not sure this type of film does his type of talent justice), but a young Johnny Depp shows the quirkiness, charisma, and sex appeal that would make him a movie star, while Faye Dunaway adds another strong performance to her resume, and Lili Taylor shows why she would siin become one of the best actresses working in independent films.
Warner’s 1.85.1 anamorphic widescreen transfer looks quite good on this Archives release. The framing looks right, the colors are well defined and nicely reproduced and skin tones look good. Some of the darker scenes look a bit murky but otherwise, it’s a decent looking film.
The English language Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo track is average. There isn’t much channel separation but this is more dialogue heavy than a lot of films, so it works out fine. Levels are well balanced, the score sounds fine, and while the mix won’t floor you, it does the job.
There are no special features.
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