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Raising Arizona (1987)
Raising Arizona (1987)
1987 | Comedy
Story: Raising Arizona starts as we meet H.I. McDunnough (Cage) a petty thieve that has a habit of robbing convenience stores, he falls for police officer Ed (Hunter) and after his third spell in prison he decides to settle down with Ed and hope to start a family.

When the couple learn they can’t have children, their lives take a turn for the worse until rich businessman Nathan Arizona Sr (Wilson) has 5 babies, believing they can help, they steal one of the babies and the events of the film follows them trying to keep the baby and avoid the law.

 

Thoughts on Raising Arizona

 

Characters – H.I. McDunnough has been in and out of prison for the last decade each time getting closer to the arresting officer, deciding he wants to go clean he gets married and plans to start a family, only for his past to come back and haunt him forcing him to return to the life of crime. He is a character that has fallen into the life of crime and just can’t get out of it. Ed is a police officer that hasn’t had the best life, she falls for H.I. getting married and wanting to start a family. She learns she can’t have child, turning to a life of crime to get her own child. Nathan Arizona Sr is the father of the five babies willing to pay anything to get his son back legally or not. Gale is one half of criminal buddies pairing of H.I. that after breaking out of prison turns to his friend for help.

Performances – Nicolas Cage is wonderful in the leading role, where we see him show moments of his crazy level while giving a performance you will remember. Holly Hunter is great too where we see her create a performance where you feel for the pain and confliction her character goes through. When we look at the supporting cast we do get good performances from everyone that will give us enough to enjoy what we saw.

Story – The story here follows an unlikely couple that decide to take a child because they couldn’t have one of their own. We follow the build up to their relationship and focus on how the couple’s life had the ups and downs before the incident. By using a very real situation people could go through by not being able to have children and showing the fact the adoption process isn’t the fairest on the people that would offer a good home is important for the film. the hapless events the couple go through adds to the story and as with most of the Coen bothers movies we get lots of arcs that come together to add up to a final act which pts everything together.

Comedy/Crime – The comedy in the film comes from the events that the couple must go through, usually coming from H.I. actions in what is a crime world where he is a petty criminal taking any advantages he can.

Settings – The film takes us to the open America where money would be tight leading to the mistakes being made by the people who are just desperate for anything to come their way.


Scene of the Movie – The diaper chase.

That Moment That Annoyed Me – The baby forgetting scenes.

Final Thoughts – This is a classic crime comedy that shows us just how talented the Coen Brothers are, we get to see the best of Cage and a story which can be enjoyed by all.

 

Overall: Crime Comedy that is a must watch.
  
We All Want Impossible Things
We All Want Impossible Things
Catherine Newman | 2022 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
What a wonderful book this is! I started reading with trepidation, but as I read, I realised that this isn’t just a book about dying, it’s about the living right up until you die. It’s a book about life - and about having a good death. It’s incredibly moving, I wouldn’t say it’s depressing or morose at all, in fact I would say that it’s life affirming.

Edi and Ash have been best friends since childhood. When Edi is diagnosed with terminal cancer, Ash offers to take her home to where she lives, so that her young son doesn’t have to watch her final weeks.

The hospice that Edi stays in is full of interesting characters: from the patient who plays Fiddler on the Roof at full glorious volume, to the doctor who reminds Ash of one of the Sopranos, and a musician who can play any song you request.

This is a book of laughter and sadness, of letting go and moving on. Ash is a wonderful friend with a rather messy, frankly hilarious, sex life. Ash and Eli’s relationship is truly special.

We All Want Impossible Things is a touching novel that had me laughing and crying in equal measure, as well as bringing back memories of my own experiences.

This book really is worth reading. Utterly beautiful.
  
40x40

Southern Today (21 KP) rated Fangirl in Books

Nov 7, 2017  
Fangirl
Fangirl
Rainbow Rowell | 2014 | Young Adult (YA)
9
8.9 (46 Ratings)
Book Rating
So, I love this book. I have been trying to read it since it came out, and finally got it at a library. Yay!

For some reason, I thought that, in this book, Cath (the main character) would meet her favorite character in real life. She does not. But what Rowell does do is describe a girl who has some very real life social issues. Some of which I can relate to.

I absolutely love Levi. He is wonderful. I still don’t have a very clear picture of him in my head and I think that might be a good thing. This is a book that I don’t think I want to see in theaters. If we did, I would probably have mixed feelings. We could never see into Cath’s life so clearly.

That’s all I have to say here. I loved this book. Look at my portfolio for a review to come!
  
Slow Motion (Pet Play by the Lake)
Slow Motion (Pet Play by the Lake)
BJ Cox | 2023 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
SLOW MOTION is part of the Pet Play by the Lake series and is the first book by this author I have read.

To be honest, it didn't work as well for me as some of the others. I get that 'real life' can get in the way of a relationship, but the time our two MCs spent apart was more than together, or so it felt. I also didn't get how Dale suddenly became a sloth and a boy. All it took was one comment and he's there. The whole relationship between Dale and Troy just felt a bit off, and that's not even taking into account how it ended with Leif!

The best part of this story were the Misfits. I loved each and every one of the characters and how they all came together.

I thought the premise of this story was a good one, with some brilliant characters, but I found the two main characters to be quite disappointing with their actions and behaviour.

And I still have absolutely no idea what a sloth does apart from hug people!

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
May 1, 2023
  
To All the Boys I've Loved Before
To All the Boys I've Loved Before
Jenny Han | 2014 | Children
9
8.8 (12 Ratings)
Book Rating
I picked this up mostly because the trailer for the Netflix adaptation looked AMAZING. It's the first book in a trilogy, and I really want to read the other two now! Lara Jean is the middle daughter in a house of three daughters, being raised by their widower father. The relationships between the four of them play a large part in the book, as they are all adjusting to the eldest daughter being away at college. Everyone's roles are changing, and in the middle of that, Lara Jean's private love letters get mailed to the boys she wrote them to, throwing her love life into chaos as well.

I loved almost every character in this book - even Lara's troublemaking best friend has a good heart. I definitely need to watch the Netflix show now, because I really want to see how Chris - aforementioned best friend - is represented!

The family scenes around Christmas really tugged at my heart - Christmas has always been my favorite holiday, and the author absolutely NAILED the nostalgic, slightly dreamy, loving holiday atmosphere.

To All The Boys I've Loved Before was a cute, sweet read, and really my only negative thing to say about it is the ending left me hanging! Which is part of why I really need to read the other two books, so I suppose it was a good strategy. But man I hate cliffhangers!

You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.com