This absolutely wonderful yet vastly overlooked film remains one of the finest instalments in the Coen Brothers cannon to this day. Part affectionate homage to the fast-talking movies of the 1940s (most notably 'His Girl Friday'), part playful satire on the cutthroat worlds of business and media, and a winning, immensely enjoyable metropolitan fantasy all-over, I fell in love with every single aspect of 'the Hudsucker Proxy' when I first came across it, and subsequent viewings have only left me even more convinced that I'll never be able to say enough good things about it. Certainly, there isn't a bad word to be said with its ingenious set-up, lovable hero, ravishing scenery and breath-taking score, this is a buried treasure trove of a production, well-worth digging out. The film-making siblings are as keen here as ever to demonstrate their knack for fusing the macabre with the mirthful, with an impressive 44-storey suicide leap forming one of the earliest scenes (and it is expertly done, so as to feel sad, horrific and, thanks to the reactions from various onlookers, hysterical all at once) but on the whole I'd say this rates as the most whimsical, even magical, of their efforts thus far, playing almost like their personalised take on the films of Frank Capra. It's warped, wacky and unorthodox, with their trademark Coen anarchy written all over it, but with genuine warmth and feel-goodness always nuzzling at the centre. The blend is so perfect, and with so much on offer for everyone, I have no idea why this movie has had so much trouble, since its neglected release, achieving the mass appeal it was built for.
Far removed from the disquieting grittiness of 'Fargo' and 'Blood Simple' (the two Coen flicks which, incidentally, would be right up there with this one in my Top 3 list of all their output, so you know my tastes are assorted), not only is it brilliantly comical and laugh-out-loud hilarious on a consistent level, it also tells a charming and irresistible underdog tale in its most basic and effective form. Tim Robbins is at his topmost endearing (very, very high indeed) as Norville Barnes, the naive young business school graduate who makes up for what he lacks in canniness with bright ideas and guileless innocence. Arriving in New York City in the late 1950s with hopes of making it big, only to wind up toiling at the nadir of the occupational food chain in the mail rooms of the aggressive Hudsucker Industries, thanks to sheer fluke in circumstance he finds himself promoted to the top of the company in a matter of hours. There, he gets the chance to live out his personal dream of bringing his revolutionary design for a new children's toy, the 'Hula Hoop' (or, as it could just have easily been branded, the 'Wacky Circumference', amongst other possible monikers) to the world, unaware that it's all just part of a devious stock-holder ploy, and that he's little more than a puppet, or indeed, 'proxy', in the hands of the scheming Paul Newman.
At the bare bones, it's the familiar saga of a good-natured man wrestling, if unwittingly, with impersonal corporate greed, the odds stacked firmly to his detriment, but leave it up to the Coens to make that feel refreshing and resourceful. The abundance of clever dialogue and snazzy scenes, in the form of everything from a dream sequence to a vintage news bulletin, to a brief commentary provided on one encounter from a pair of jaded onlookers, keeps things ticking along very smoothly, while Carter Burwell's musical score is a scintillating audio treat, splendidly structured with the on-screen action. The results of this are truly uproarious (try getting through that Hula Hoop production sequence with an entirely straight expression on your face I swear, it can't be done). But what really brings this movie to life, and one of the key reasons why I've no hesitations to award it full marks, is the sheer pull and appeal of its cast of characters. For all their exaggerated, embellished quirkiness, each and every one of them comes complete with the essential bona fide qualities needed to engage us in the story the unsuspecting, genial Norville is a charming, fascinating character you can readily warm to, his sneaky but sensitive romantic interest, journalist Amy Archer (a wonderfully dynamic Jennifer Jason Leigh), likewise, while Sidney J. Mussburger is appropriately menacing as well as amusing. They're also complimented by an unforgettable collection of support, including Moses the Clock Guy (who provides intermittent narration and addresses both the audience and the characters alike, a technique which would later be repeated in 'the Big Lebowski'), Buzz the staggeringly voluble elevator boy, a creepy, wordless janitor and, last but not least, a tee-totalling beatnik bartender played by the phenomenal Steve Buscemi (a small role, but worth a mention), all of whom have their own distinctive flavour and sparkle to add to the picture, each helping to make it that extra bit more terrific.
To sum up, 'the Hudsucker Proxy' is a comic masterpiece, a laugh-riot that touches, dazzles and delights, and without doubt one of the sharpest movies to come out of the 1990s. And that's something which the general indifference of the movie-going public at the time can never take away from it. Of course, it wasn't the only film starring Tim Robbins to be denied the recognition it sorely deserved on its initial release in 1994 fortunately for 'the Shawshank Redemption', success may have taken its time but it got there eventually. I only hope that the same can be said of 'the Hudsucker Proxy' one day. Lord knows, it deserves it.
Grade: A+
Far removed from the disquieting grittiness of 'Fargo' and 'Blood Simple' (the two Coen flicks which, incidentally, would be right up there with this one in my Top 3 list of all their output, so you know my tastes are assorted), not only is it brilliantly comical and laugh-out-loud hilarious on a consistent level, it also tells a charming and irresistible underdog tale in its most basic and effective form. Tim Robbins is at his topmost endearing (very, very high indeed) as Norville Barnes, the naive young business school graduate who makes up for what he lacks in canniness with bright ideas and guileless innocence. Arriving in New York City in the late 1950s with hopes of making it big, only to wind up toiling at the nadir of the occupational food chain in the mail rooms of the aggressive Hudsucker Industries, thanks to sheer fluke in circumstance he finds himself promoted to the top of the company in a matter of hours. There, he gets the chance to live out his personal dream of bringing his revolutionary design for a new children's toy, the 'Hula Hoop' (or, as it could just have easily been branded, the 'Wacky Circumference', amongst other possible monikers) to the world, unaware that it's all just part of a devious stock-holder ploy, and that he's little more than a puppet, or indeed, 'proxy', in the hands of the scheming Paul Newman.
At the bare bones, it's the familiar saga of a good-natured man wrestling, if unwittingly, with impersonal corporate greed, the odds stacked firmly to his detriment, but leave it up to the Coens to make that feel refreshing and resourceful. The abundance of clever dialogue and snazzy scenes, in the form of everything from a dream sequence to a vintage news bulletin, to a brief commentary provided on one encounter from a pair of jaded onlookers, keeps things ticking along very smoothly, while Carter Burwell's musical score is a scintillating audio treat, splendidly structured with the on-screen action. The results of this are truly uproarious (try getting through that Hula Hoop production sequence with an entirely straight expression on your face I swear, it can't be done). But what really brings this movie to life, and one of the key reasons why I've no hesitations to award it full marks, is the sheer pull and appeal of its cast of characters. For all their exaggerated, embellished quirkiness, each and every one of them comes complete with the essential bona fide qualities needed to engage us in the story the unsuspecting, genial Norville is a charming, fascinating character you can readily warm to, his sneaky but sensitive romantic interest, journalist Amy Archer (a wonderfully dynamic Jennifer Jason Leigh), likewise, while Sidney J. Mussburger is appropriately menacing as well as amusing. They're also complimented by an unforgettable collection of support, including Moses the Clock Guy (who provides intermittent narration and addresses both the audience and the characters alike, a technique which would later be repeated in 'the Big Lebowski'), Buzz the staggeringly voluble elevator boy, a creepy, wordless janitor and, last but not least, a tee-totalling beatnik bartender played by the phenomenal Steve Buscemi (a small role, but worth a mention), all of whom have their own distinctive flavour and sparkle to add to the picture, each helping to make it that extra bit more terrific.
To sum up, 'the Hudsucker Proxy' is a comic masterpiece, a laugh-riot that touches, dazzles and delights, and without doubt one of the sharpest movies to come out of the 1990s. And that's something which the general indifference of the movie-going public at the time can never take away from it. Of course, it wasn't the only film starring Tim Robbins to be denied the recognition it sorely deserved on its initial release in 1994 fortunately for 'the Shawshank Redemption', success may have taken its time but it got there eventually. I only hope that the same can be said of 'the Hudsucker Proxy' one day. Lord knows, it deserves it.
Grade: A+