THE HUDSUCKER PROXY
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1994 James Berardinelli
Rating (Linear 0 to 10): 8.5
Date Released: 3/11/93 (NY, LA) Running Length: 1:52 Rated: PG (Mature themes)
Starring: Tim Robbins, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Paul Newman,
Charles Durning, Jim True, John Mahoney, William Cobbs,
Bruce Campbell
Director: Joel Coen
Producer: Ethan Coen
Screenplay: Joel & Ethan Coen and Sam Raimi
Music: Carter Burwell
Released by Warner Brothers
"Out of hope, out of rope, out of time." - William Cobbs in the opening narration of THE HUDSUCKER PROXY.
Tim Robbins has a knack for finding his way into superior satires. After taking the lead role in Robert Altman's THE PLAYER and starring in his own big-feature directorial debut, BOB ROBERTS, Mr. Robbins has now landed top billing for the latest film from the Coen Brothers, a wickedly funny and incisive lampoon of big business called THE HUDSUCKER PROXY.
Norville Barnes (Tim Robbins) is an imbecile from Muncie with a single idea for a children's toy when he wanders into Hudsucker Industries for a job in the mail room. Coincidentally, as Barnes is going in, the president of the company, Waring Hudsucker, is on his way out--through the window of the board room on the forty-fourth floor (not counting the Mezzanine). Hudsucker's death sets off a panic; company rules state that since he died without a will or living relatives, his majority share must be sold on the open market. Determined to devalue the stock so that the current board members can afford to buy it up, Chief exec Sidney J. Mussberger (Paul Newman) devises a scheme to destroy the Hudsucker reputation by choosing a complete incompetent for the top seat. At that moment, he meets Norville Barnes...
>From the opening sequence, soaring through the snow over the benighted building tops of an unnamed city, it's apparent that THE HUDSUCKER PROXY is going to be a awe-inspiring visual experience. Given that the producer/director pairing is that of brothers Joel and Ethan Coen, who headed such projects as BLOOD SIMPLE, MILLER'S CROSSING, and BARTON FINK, the emphasis on set design, artwork, and innovative cinematography (by Roger Deakins), shouldn't come as a surprise.
THE HUDSUCKER PROXY skewers big business on the same shaft that Robert Altman ran Hollywood through with THE PLAYER. From the BRAZIL-like scenes in the cavernous mail room to the convoluted machinations in the board room, this film is pure satire of the nastiest and most enjoyable sort. In this surreal world of 1958 can be found many of the issues confronting large corporations in the 1990s, all twisted to match the vision of the filmmakers.
If the main title sequence is impressive, numerous scenes throughout the movie are no less so, including (but not limited to) the plummet of Waring Hudsucker from the forty-fourth floor (not counting the Mezzanine). The spiraling, vertiginous drop is breathtaking to watch, thanks to the Coen's vision (aided by second unit director/co-writer Sam Raimi, who was heavily involved in the special effects shots) and the wizards at ILM.
For those who have ever felt stymied by the bureaucratic process, the mail room of THE HUDSUCKER PROXY offers a cartoon-like indictment, with Norville's whirlwind orientation promising him "the boot" if he forgets his employee number or messes up voucher colors. Also, when the moment of silence for Waring is announced, it goes without saying that the brief stoppage of work will demand an appropriate deduction from all paychecks.
The dialogue crackles, with one-liners and double entendres peppering the character exchanges. A Hula Hoop is referred to as an "Extruded Plastic Dingus," and a very un-Wim Wenders-like angel makes an appearance singing "She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain."
Tim Robbins, who by now has a firm grasp on how to play characters in films of this nature, is perfect as the dimwitted, good-natured Norville Barnes, a man who fears his old mail room supervisor even after he's been named president. Mr. Robbins is effective mingling "straight" acting and physical comedy.
Paul Newman, continually chomping on his cigars, provides the perfect villain--the personification of corrupt corporate ideals. Mr. Newman clearly has a lot of fun in this role and, during the casting process, needed little convincing beyond a reading of the script to accept the part.
The scene-stealer, however, is Jennifer Jason Leigh, lampooning Greer Garson and Katherine Hepburn as a fast-talking, tough-as-nails, Pulitzer- prize winning reporter. Her scenes with Bruce Campbell and John Mahoney include so much snappy dialogue that they sometimes feel like a tennis match. and she packs a mean right cross and left hook.
In addition to a number of brief "period piece" parodies (such as a fake newsreel detailing developments at Hudsucker Industries and a scientific dissertation on how a Hula Hoop works), THE HUDSUCKER PROXY includes one of the most openly-hilarious on-screen moments of the year. Then again, there's a lot in this movie to laugh at beyond that single scene.
Neither the Coen brothers nor Sam Raimi are regarded as particularly mainstream, and THE HUDSUCKER PROXY is the first big-budget motion picture from them. Hopefully, the eclectic reputations of the filmmakers will not limit the movie's box office success. With its refined wit and glorious vision, THE HUDSUCKER PROXY is certainly deserving of a wide audience.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
.
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews