Thats why he was dreaming about him before he ever met him. Smalls was Hi's criminal future, that is why he was trying to get the baby, it was a symbol of Hi's future "good" and potentially the death of smalls, his alternate personality. That is why he had the same tattoo as he did.
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He's Hi's bad side come to life, I believe -- Hi "somehow unleashed him," as Hi theorizes he had. That's how I read it.
_Richard
Eh, that was kind of left for debate. It's possible that they had similar pasts (no parents, etc) but Hi chose to start a family and "reform" (more or less) while Smalls chose to extort money and sell babies on the black market.
shareI always took it as the Lone rider of the apocalypse was actually Hi's dad, which is why they had the same tattoo as well as the biker carrying the leather baby boots on his belt. but it's definitely a subject that can be debated about endlessly.
shareI disagree, I think Smalls is literal person. He interacts with the characters and behaves like the bounty hunter he is portrayed to be, even searching the house and sniffing around. His identity is unclear. I saw one movie site go on about the matching tattoos, they said it meant they were old associates from a motorcycle gang. The baby shoes is what really puzzles me. I like what you said about it possibly being his dad. Or maybe a long lost brother, that would tie into the "My Mother Never Loved Me" one on his arm. Maybe he knew it was him all along. I believe he did camp outside H.I's trailer. Perhaps he was contemplating what to do, later he met Arizona about the price. Really good movie though. A shame it's not on cable very often.
shareGreat song, by the way. I wish I had realized how good Nick Lowe was 25 years ago.
shareAbsolutely. Smalls is the "dark side" of Hi. Its not so much the same tatoo that's revealing of it, but rather HI's recognition of that during the struggle. Thats partly why he says "Im sorry" as Smalls destructs. He is saying goodbye to a part of himself. And the grenade pin on his finger I think was meant to symbolize a wedding ring - his marriage to Edwina enabled him to beat his dark side and live a full life. Of course the ring is not on the correct finger, because Hi will always be a little "off center" ;)
I don't care if the Cohen brothers are Democrats or not - I love them!
I can easily separate out my political beliefs when art is concerned, although I'll admit that not many Republicans can!
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"What one man can do, another can do"
aps722 wrote: <<Absolutely. Smalls is the "dark side" of Hi. Its not so much the same tatoo that's revealing of it, but rather HI's recognition of that during the struggle. Thats partly why he says "Im sorry" as Smalls destructs.>>
Sweet. Great interpretation.
aps722 wrote: <<He is saying goodbye to a part of himself. And the grenade pin on his finger I think was meant to symbolize a wedding ring - his marriage to Edwina enabled him to beat his dark side and live a full life. Of course the ring is not on the correct finger, because Hi will always be a little "off center" ;)>>
Freaking gorgeous! A+ for you!
aps722 wrote: <<I don't care if the Cohen brothers are Democrats or not - I love them!>>
Honey, you are too damn smart to be a Republican. Leave the foolish dark side and come over to the light where you belong. Yes, you belong among us Democrats.
aps722 wrote: <<I can easily separate out my political beliefs when art is concerned, although I'll admit that not many Republicans can>>
I never knew one who could. You are no Republican and that, my friend, is a compliment.
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aps722 wrote: <<"What one man can do, another can do" >>
Not as well. Can you play basketball as well as Michael Jordan is his prime? I mean, you can probably play, but you will never make a living at it. Are you as brilliant at math as Einstein, as good in English as Harold Bloom, as good a dancer as Baryshnikov? Do you write as well as Mark Twain? Sing as well as Barry White? Doubt it. Are you still worthy? Yep -- even if you aren't as hot as a young Harrison Ford (and really -- who is? Except possibly Johnny Depp). Once you understand that...well, Republicanism will be a dim and embarrassing memory for you...you will cringe when you think you how you -- with your genius! -- fell for that. Don't worry though. I know you will turn out just fine in the end.
Partisan politics are for knuckleheads and the thieves who control them.
I am Jack's IMDb post.share
This was my take on the film from my first viewing. In many ways the relationship between the two is similar to that between Barton Fink and Charlie.
"Sometimes you have to take the bull by the tail, and face the truth" - G. Marx
I don´t think Charlie was Barton´s alter ego. He just represented lots of things Barton was willfully oblivious of - a reality of a "common man" (or rather that there really is no such thing as "common man" in the first place) and life unlike his own pampered existence in general.
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan
It's just a possible reading, in both films.
"Sometimes you have to take the bull by the tail, and face the truth" - G. Marx
I don't think so, In the end Nathan Arizona asks the couple if they're with that Smalls fella. If he was Hi's alter ego Arizona wouldn't even know about him. If anything, I would say the guy that said Small's was Hi's dad seemed more on point.
"I have to return some video tapes"
Parts of a characters psyche manifesting as a physical being isn´t exactly a concept Coens invented. Ever seen any Cronenberg or Lynch movies?
"facts are stupid things" - Ronald Reagan
arts of a characters psyche manifesting as a physical being isn´t exactly a concept Coens invented.Hitchcock did it often, in Strangers on a Train, Shadow of a Doubt, Rear Window, North By Northwest, and others.
Hmm.. Never thought of this before.. funny.. Smalls pulling Hi out from under the truck at the end by his leg did remind me of Hi in the beginning pulling the baby out from under the crib. I'm just too shallow to have made any further connection... :)
Dainty things never shrink from Lux!
Doubling is a literary devise, and shouldn't be taken too literally. It's just an interesting take on the film that H.I. "created" Smalls out of the darker parts of his own consciousness. As I mentioned above, this is similar to the way that, for example, Roger created "George Kaplan" in North By Northwest, or how Guy created Bruno in Strangers on a Train, or how young Charlie brought Uncle Charlie into the town.
You need to see in on a symbolic level. Smalls came out of H.I. fears, which he saw in his dreams. You needn't find examples in every scene, but just to see the big picture.
"Let there be songs, to fill the air"
Smalls being Hi's father makes little sense to me. Why would he go after his son like that and potentially kill him? Why did Hi not recognize him if he were his dad, or make any mention of it?
Personally I thought he was a comical version of Chigurgh's character in "No Country for Old Men". I saw that film before I saw "Raising Arizona", and Smalls reminded me a lot of Chigurgh, albeit far more over the top and whatnot. Just the idea of an unstoppable evil.
Smalls being Hi's father makes little sense to me. Why would he go after his son like that and potentially kill him? Why did Hi not recognize him if he were his dad, or make any mention of it?
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