Arizona Dream | Rotten Tomatoes (2025)

87% Tomatometer 15 Reviews 86% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings

Axel (Johnny Depp) gets caught up into the family car business when his cousin, Paul (Vincent Gallo), coaxes him to come to Arizona to attend the wedding of their Uncle Leo (Jerry Lewis). As Axel makes the decision to try selling Cadillacs with his family, he meets an eccentric woman named Elaine (Faye Dunaway) and her equally quirky stepdaughter, Grace (Lili Taylor). Their lives become inextricably intertwined through romance, dreams -- and death.

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Arizona Dream

Arizona Dream

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Critics Consensus

Inscrutably strange, yet undeniably compelling, Arizona Dream is anchored by magnetic performances from Johnny Depp and Faye Dunaway.

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Critics Reviews

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Arizona Dream | Rotten Tomatoes (1) Variety Staff Variety Kusturica grafts his sometimes unwieldy Europe-inflected concerns onto brash American landscapes with mixed results. Much is made of dreams that, either spoken of at length or illustrated, are offered in lieu of character development. Dec 1, 2008 Full Review Arizona Dream | Rotten Tomatoes (2) Geoff Andrew Time Out The first 'American' film by the director of Time of the Gypsies is every bit as bizarre and imaginative as his earlier work, although it's also maddeningly indulgent and erratic. Jun 24, 2006 Full Review Arizona Dream | Rotten Tomatoes (3) Janet Maslin New York Times Even at its full length, showing off a more seductive rhythm and the buoyant humanism that is this director's calling card, it remains as ripe a subject for therapy as for criticism. Aug 30, 2004 Full Review Arizona Dream | Rotten Tomatoes (4) Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews Though entertaining at times, it's not everyone's dream pic. Rated: B- Jun 27, 2015 Full Review Arizona Dream | Rotten Tomatoes (5) TV Guide Lewis is only slightly awful, and he and Depp have a nice rapport; Dunaway gives a particularly juicy performance; and Taylor is simply amazing, seemingly able to transform herself physically for every role she plays. Rated: 3.5/4 Jun 19, 2009 Full Review Arizona Dream | Rotten Tomatoes (6) Film4 Staff Film4 A peculiar and entrancing gem. Jun 19, 2009 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Kathryn V Real good movie , some good laughs. A little weird. Rated 4/5 Stars • Rated 4 out of 5 stars 08/03/24 Full Review Aender S I usually like Emir Kusturica's films, but this one's even too weird for his standards. Rated 2.5/5 Stars • Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 04/11/24 Full Review S R Bizarre, tacky and ridiculous. It has some moments, but it doesn't make a whole movie. Jerry Lewis was my favorite part. I saw it for the director and cast. RUS. Rated 2.5/5 Stars • Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 03/28/24 Full Review Nisha Y The director's aesthetic delights in many artful scenes that escape Hollywood norms while evoking familiarity and wonder. The interesting mix of actors is enough pull on its own, and all the performances are fine. The plot unfolds surreptitiously under the whimsical distractions and includes contradiction and critique, much like a Lynch film, but there is something about this film that makes you wonder why there even has to be one frame, let alone one scene where a woman is getting slapped around, and it makes you realize that Dunaway has been slapped around in so many films. But its hard to condemn the writing/directing because the film ultimately spirals into entropy to any solution, the older woman gets the younger man but it's violent and unstable, the younger guy has a somewhat sweeter encounter with a woman nearer his age, but she is fatal, the older man marrying the younger woman is shown in his hypocrisy in criticizing the older women, and then he dies before his young fiancé has to marry him, so she gets to be free from a marriage that was making her weep. Good vs bad definitions get blurred and spiral down the plug hole via the magnetic pull the Depp character speaks about when relating what his mother had told him. It is rich, interesting but does lose its momentum and reason at times, to a degree where it loses the connection to the viewer, in other words it becomes boring. Well worth the watch for movie lovers, but I think it needs to be kept in mind that this director's controversy includes his support of Putin and Russia's treatment and action in the Ukraine, a dark and destructive streak that runs through his films. Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 05/23/23 Full Review Audience Member Bizarre, eclectic, unpredictable. At times classy but more often crude. Creative chaos. Rated 4.5/5 Stars • Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/12/23 Full Review Audience Member This movie was great . Probably coulda be 30 minutes shorter tho Thats my only complaint at all 3.7 Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/29/21 Full Review Read all reviews

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Cast & Crew

Emir Kusturica Director Johnny Depp Blackmar Jerry Lewis Leo Sweetie Faye Dunaway Elaine Stalker Lili Taylor Grace Stalker Vincent Gallo Paul Leger
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Synopsis Axel (Johnny Depp) gets caught up into the family car business when his cousin, Paul (Vincent Gallo), coaxes him to come to Arizona to attend the wedding of their Uncle Leo (Jerry Lewis). As Axel makes the decision to try selling Cadillacs with his family, he meets an eccentric woman named Elaine (Faye Dunaway) and her equally quirky stepdaughter, Grace (Lili Taylor). Their lives become inextricably intertwined through romance, dreams -- and death.

Director
Emir Kusturica

Producer
Yves Marmion, Claudie Ossard

Screenwriter
David Atkins, Emir Kusturica, David Atkins

Distributor
Warner Bros.

Production Co
Constellation

Rating
R

Genre
Comedy, Drama

Original Language
English

Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 9, 1994, Wide

Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 1, 2008

Runtime
1h 59m

Sound Mix
LC-Concept Digital Sound, Dolby, Stereo
Most Popular at Home Now
Arizona Dream | Rotten Tomatoes (2025)

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