Sam Raimi, the Serious Director

Rating: 8/10 (13 October 1999)

Sam Raimi and the Coen Brothers are good friends. It was not until Raimi's last two films-- this one, and "A Simple Plan,"-- that Raimi got all artistic on us. And the two styles are very, very similar.
The difference is that the Coen Brothers know what they're doing. Raimi directs some very, very good scenes in this film, with excellent characterization and emotion. Every scene is wonderfully done. The problem is that every scene is treated like a beautifully rendered boxcar, and they were just all sorta put together, end to end, with no sense of dramatic arc or overall picture.
The end of the baseball game was quite dramatic and beautifully done. The end of the FILM, exactly one scene later, is anticlimactic and unfulfilling. But it was directed well.
Great "serious" outing for Raimi. I hope he learns from his mistakes. Or else learns how to incorporate the style of THIS film, with the style that made him famous.