The reviews for "Arizona Dream" are mostly incredibly positive...with lots of 9s and 10s. However, this is a film that is self-selecting....and many of the folks who love it have a love for Johnny Depp or love films that are confusing artsy messes. In other words, if you took 50 or 100 random folks and showed it to them, you'd no doubt have lots of 1s and 2s....but the average person isn't the type to watch the movie in the first place.
It is really impossible for me to summarize the plot or explain the film. So much of it is surreal or nonsensical....and understanding the characters, their dreams and their actions is beyond my abilities! I will, however, try. The film starts with a scene about Eskimos...which, really has almost nothing to do with the rest of the story. Suddenly, the scene switches to Johnny Depp and his friend....and the story is about Depp's journey to Arizona for his uncle's wedding...and the two bizarro women Depp meets and with whom he spends most of the rest of the movie. One is an older bizarre woman with a strong sexual appetite, the other is her step-daughter who clearly is VERY mentally ill. Where all this goes....well...I really didn't care. And, throughout it all, Depp's character has a lot of dreams and obsessions that really challenge you to keep watching.
I tried very hard to like this film. After all, Jerry Lewis is in it and he is often fascinating in movies. But the story just goes no where and the characters simply are confusing and annoying....and I felt zero connection to them. Frankly, for me, it was a complete waste of time. Now understand....I have probably seen more artsy films than anyone you'll ever meet and I don't need a story to be conventional. But here, the characters simply are annoying messes and there really wasn't any payoff for me. The story seemed weird just for the sake of being weird.
It is really impossible for me to summarize the plot or explain the film. So much of it is surreal or nonsensical....and understanding the characters, their dreams and their actions is beyond my abilities! I will, however, try. The film starts with a scene about Eskimos...which, really has almost nothing to do with the rest of the story. Suddenly, the scene switches to Johnny Depp and his friend....and the story is about Depp's journey to Arizona for his uncle's wedding...and the two bizarro women Depp meets and with whom he spends most of the rest of the movie. One is an older bizarre woman with a strong sexual appetite, the other is her step-daughter who clearly is VERY mentally ill. Where all this goes....well...I really didn't care. And, throughout it all, Depp's character has a lot of dreams and obsessions that really challenge you to keep watching.
I tried very hard to like this film. After all, Jerry Lewis is in it and he is often fascinating in movies. But the story just goes no where and the characters simply are confusing and annoying....and I felt zero connection to them. Frankly, for me, it was a complete waste of time. Now understand....I have probably seen more artsy films than anyone you'll ever meet and I don't need a story to be conventional. But here, the characters simply are annoying messes and there really wasn't any payoff for me. The story seemed weird just for the sake of being weird.