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The Hudsucker Proxy

The Hudsucker Proxy

List Price: $19.98
Your Price: $15.98
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Enchanting, Dazzling, Extrordinary.
Review: This was above all one of the most original movies, directed by Joel Coen who brought you many other wierd sensed yet enchanting movies like; Fargo, Raising Arizona and, O Brother Where Art Though. Joel Coen also wrote this Dazzling story along with Ethan Coen and Sam Raimi[who did the Army of Darkness trilogy]. Simple Seeming Tim Robbins finds his way to the top, working above the evil Sidney J. Mussburger, who along with the other men of the company want to crash the corrperation and buy it cheap, assuming Robbins for an idiot, they make him president. Stupendis idea for a movie and very Extrordinary music by Carter Burwell, and Spectacular shots of the falls from the top of "THE HUDSUCKER PROXY" they must have used a green screen and computer graphic, but that alone is worth the viewing time, the story is so well put together with little people like Buzz the elevator man, and the man who works the clock, it will leave you pondering and thinking and wanting to see it again, it really has a great intreguing feeling about the movie that comes with the work of the Coen brothers.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME WOULD SMELL AS SWEET...
Review: Ok, ok, the title of the movie stinks and probably contributed to the movie hitting the basement, as soon as it was released. Still, it is a pretty clever and unusual movie. The premise is simple. The CEO and founder of a very successful, major corporation commits suicide. Consequently, his shares of the corporation must be sold publicly. To the dismay of the board of directors, this means that more than half the company will be owned by outsiders.

Corporate executive, Sidney Mussberger, wonderfully played by the ever handsome Paul Newman, devises a fiendish scheme to devalue the shares of the corporation. He will simply hire a numbskull and esconce him as the new CEO in order to drive the company temporarily into the ground, causing the value of the shares to plummet. The board of directors can then afford to buy the outstanding shares floating out there at rock bottom prices, retaining control of the corporation.

Sidney subsequently selects Norville Barnes, a dopey, but nice guy, played with cow eyed innocence by Tim Robbins, who works in the company mailroom, a place reminiscent of the movie Metropolis. Barnes happens to have an idea that he has been working on for years. When he shows a picture of a circle as representative of his idea, the viewer wonders just what the heck is so special about it. So does Sidney, who allows Barnes to execute his idea, believing him to be a total moron whose idea is just the thing to make the companies stock tank. This is where the Coen Brother's cleverness begins to kick in. When the viewer realizes what that circle actually is, the movie will be kicking into full gear. It is, at times, hilarious. See the film to find out just what Barnes has been working on for years. Sidney learns that the best laid plans often go awry.

Barnes becomes enamored of Amy Archer, a female reporter, who smells that something is not quite right at corporate headquarters. The role is played by Jennifer Jason Leigh in an over the top, highly stylized, uneven parody of Katherine Hepburn. Still, she makes this affectation work in the context of this film. In fact, the rat-a-tat-tat tempo of her delivery contributes to giving the film its feel of a bygone time. The action in the film purportedly takes place in the nineteen fifties, but the sets are nineteen thirties art nouveau in feel and style, as is the rapid fire delivery of some of the dialogue. This creates an odd, somewhat disconcerting, dissonanace, contributing to the film's overall quirkiness.

This is an underrated film that deserves a look by movie lovers everywhere. It has the makings of a cult classic.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: trust me folks, it's a good one!
Review: Two things killed this movie at the box office when it was first released: first, its title. Americans didn't seem to know what a "proxy" was, much less a hudsucking one. The second was its time of release. The movie came out in May as an early summer release but was actually a movie that would have been better received at Christmas. "Jaws" is a prototypical summer film. "It's A Wonderful Life," by comparison, would hardly be a summer blockbuster but sets the perfect tone for the holiday season. Come back in twenty years and you will find that "The Hudsucker Proxy" IS the Frank Capra classic for a new generation. It is Capra meets "Metropolis" blended with the smart humor of the Coens. The casting is near perfect. Tim Robbins is the naive and goofy savant. Paul Newman is as wonderful a villain as you will find as the evil Sidney Mussberger. Only Jennifer Jason Leigh takes a bit of getting used to as the tough talking reporter but she will move you by movie's end. I've had to beg, plead, wheedle and cajole my friends through the years to watch this movie and not let themselves be turned off by its title. Thus far it's left no one disappointed.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: HUDSUCKER COOKS! COENS' BEST FILM!
Review: This movie rocks. The reason this movie is so good is because of the screenplay. It's kind of obvious what the Coens were going for in this movie. They were trying to create an old style screwball comedy. They achived this with flying colors. The dialouge is classic--you would almost think Robert Riskin (writer of Frank Capra's It Happened One Night) rose from the dead and helped the write the script. The way this movie is planned out is ingenious. It's not the same old boring camera follows the people and it just happens. For example, two cabbies sitting across from Amy Archer and Norville Barnes are telling this scene between them as it goes along. This gives the film a very kenetic feeling, not a static feel like practically all other films have. The Coens used the movie camera and the medium of film to it's fullest extent, like Orson Welles did in 'Citizen Kane'. Not only is this movie the Coens' crowning achievement in script writting and filmmaking, it's funny! The Coens' experiment with physical comedy as well as verbal. The costumes, set design, and art direction of this picture are picture-perfect. You feel as if it's 1958 all over again. The cinematography of this film is exceptionally marvelous. Sweeping camera actions and dramatic lighting move the film along with it's plot. My favorite element about the film is the dialouge and the old time way that people used to talk. The Coens' captured this in a way that no other new film has ever captured. This movie is one of the best new films I have ever seen and it's good for all ages and will live forever like the screwball classics. If you do something in the style of the classics well, then it will be a classic, too! Any fans of classic movies and comedies will love this film. This film is so phenomenal, you got to see it to believe it!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: I know this review will not be "helpful" to some, but...
Review: It's been a good while since I've seen this, movie so forgive me for my harsh generalizations. I know there will be Coen Brothers die hards that will not appreciate a negative review, but for those of you who are a little more traditional, just a warning that you may find this movie quite pointless.

I quite enjoy movies without a purposeful plot, and I am not one to who even likes to write negative reviews, knowing they will be unappreciated, but I STILL took the time to find this film and warn others. That should be enough evidence for you alone to be sure you at least rent the film first if you are still interested in watcing it.

I liked Fargo, also by the Coen Brothers, but this film, as well as Raising Arizona, both seemed somewhat pointless and couldn't keep my attention long enough to make me even want to finish the film. I literally sat through an 1 1/2 of this movie waiting for it to go somewhere and got so frustrated I turned it off. The plot doesn't seem to do anything, and all I was left with was a memory of the supporting actress's incredibly poor acting and New York accent. Just a little heads up to newcomers--you've been warned.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Coen Brothers Go to Town
Review: By far the sagest, & finally sweetest, Coen brothers effort, though it MAY depend almost entirely upon viewer familiarity with four Frank Capra movies, particularly "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town" (from which most plot/character & a dozen or so scenes are quite shamelessly/innocently/charmingly lifted & suitably Coen-tweaked). Trying to judge what is happening here without doing a little very pleasant homework is silly. American movies are integral to Coen experience, essential as breathing. What you don't know may cause the brothers to tease/prank at you, but they mean well, are just trying to share, encourage interest in what came before, made them possible (plus frequently droll). ABSOLUTELY disregard advice about doing this one cold. Much of the comedy, & ALL of the heart, is in how the obvious primary basis [Deeds] & the Coen commentary on basis commingle, resonate. No free lunch. Sorry. The Coens are right (again), by the way: Deeds is perfect-pitch Capracorn, the ONLY choice for the skewball remake. A double-feature is sternly recommended.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Showing Millionaire Tyrants The Universe Doesn¿t Revolve Aro
Review: Showing Millionaire Tyrants The Universe Doesn't Revolve Around Them!

Money can't always buy happiness is the very true moral of this big budget Hollywood production. The storyline of the Hudsucker Proxy is built around highly successful CEO, Waring Hudsucker taking his own life even though his company, Hudsucker Industries is at its peak. This is where the carefully planed Coen brother plot kicks into full swing. In accordance with company policy the 65% of the company in which Hudsucker owned must be floated to the open market. The board of directors shudders at the very sound that more than half the company will be owned by any Tom, Dick or Harry anywhere in the world. At the current rate per stock, no member of the board can afford to purchase more than 1% of the company, so Sidney Mussenberger develops a devilishly clever scheme to create a panic sell off. Thus devaluing the stock to the price of an average bag of peanuts.

Norville Barnes, played by Tim Robbins, is a slow-witted Muncie boy who soon finds himself in the midst of Sidney's plan. With no prior experience or any decent qualifications he lands in the mailroom where a complete mockery of bureaucy takes place. Tim Robbins maximises the character in his dynamic style to present us with a dim-witted, fast talking and good-natured character. There are lots of little twists and turns, which keep you coming back for more!

Being a Coen brother's production from scripting to production, you can expect the highest quality film production, not a paper-thin Hollywood potato. Many techniques have been used in this film that have never been seen in other film production which will make the technology acquired in this film the basis for other movies. As with many films of this sort, it's not the story that makes it a good film, its how the story is told. Backed by over 50years of Film experience from Warner Brother studios, I guarantee that you will be stunned by the sheer scale of the movie.

Hilarious parody of big business, this film is one for the whole family!

Written By Kelvin Liew 2001

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Plenty of Sound and Fury here...
Review: I had heard lots of good things about "The Hudsucker Proxy" and last night when I was planning to stay up all night (making the transition to a night shift) I decided to pick it up from the local Blockbuster. By 3:00 am I really wished I could pack it in and go to bed, so that may have influenced my perception of the movie.

It definitely had its moments, and some excellent performances, especially Newman's turn as Sid Mussburger, the conniving executive who masterminds the installation of a puppet president after Waring Hudsucker makes an impressive exit and leaves the post vacant. But it seems everything about this film was over the top, from the visual style to the performances of Tim Robins and Jennifer Jason Leigh. The film is set in the late '50s but stylistically has more to do with films of the '30s, which I found disconcerting. After awhile, Leigh's non-stop patter began to grate. Given all of this, the movie's ham-fisted plot devices didn't stick out too sorely. Maybe I just need to see the film again when I'm not strung out from lack of sleep, but my first impression is that "The Hudsucker Proxy" is a movie with hints of genius that get lost in all of the commotion.

Regarding the DVD itself, it includes both wide screen and pan & scan versions. There is no bonus material, and dialogue was difficult to hear against the rest of the soundtrack, even with dialogue enhancement turned on.

--TR--

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: SEE THIS MOVIE
Review: Woah! I was blown away when I first saw this on TNT late one night. I now own the video, soundtrack, screenplay, and even a hoola hoop because I LOVE THIS MOVIE SO MUCH! Everything in this movie is magical: the sets, the dialogue, the characters, the music...... everything. The Coen Brothers' second best film, in my opinion (right after Fargo). If you want an incredibly surreal, fun, "what the?" afternoon, watch this movie. Don't expect anything but to be entertained.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sure, Sure
Review: THe Coen Brothers are absolutely perfect, i have given 5 stars to every movie they have made, except blood simple, and hudsucker is no exception. This is not necessarily a typical Coen movie, it has more of a whymsical and humorous side to it than the usual dark humour. This movie is closer to Raising Arizona or O brother where art thou. THIS IS NOT LIKE FARGO OR THE BIG LEBOWSKI, there is no swearing or graphic violence, I believe the movie is only pg. So i love the movie and it has a ton of memorable dialogue in it. Each character almost lives i ntheir own little universe, and the whole film is filled with wit and snappy dialogue. Not a drama, not a hilarious comedy, not action, not adventure. I don't know how to classify this film. It may prove to slow for some, becasue of the lack of action or hilarity. I'd say it moves like the Big Lebowski, scenes are full of talking and everything falls together nicely.

AS for the DVD the film looks great, not phenomenal but better than a regular DVD, hell i would even call it semi phenominal. Plus it gives the option of full or widescreen...yeah! THe sound is fine, not mindblowing, but it doesn't drown out voices with the music and everything blends together well. What extras... not even a trailer. Fantastic movie with a great transfer on a bare bones dvd, but it's only 16.99


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