Check these Raising Arizona quotes we’ve gathered if you want some profound lessons hidden behind hilarious lines!
Amongst the Coen brothers’ best works is Raising Arizona. With Nicolas Cage and the movie’s funny quips on everything, it’s sure to be a hit! But, aside from all the humor, many meaningful lessons are embedded in each scene.
H.I. McDunnough, played by Nicolas Cage, is a convict that goes in and out of prison. Hoping to escape this cycle and start a family with his beloved, Edwina, they devised a criminal scheme to kidnap a baby!
Indeed, Raising Arizona will have your belly ache with all the laughter. At the same time, it will make you question what it means to have an ideal American family. Read on to learn more about the movie’s lessons and characters!
Start here.
And make sure to check out these The Usual Suspects quotes and They Live quotes.
Best Raising Arizona Quotes
1. Edwina McDunnough: “He’s beautiful.”
H.I. McDunnough: “Yeah, he’s awful damn good. I think I got the best one.”
2. H.I. McDunnough: “I’ll be taking these Huggies and whatever cash you got.”
Edwina McDunnough: “That son’ bitch. That son of a bitch! You son of a bitch!”
H.I. McDunnough: “Better hurry it up, I’m in dutch with the wife.”
3. “Now, y’all who’re without sin can cast the first stone.” – H.I. McDunnough
4. Edwina McDunnough: “You mean you busted out of jail?”
Evelle Snoats: “No, ma’am. We released ourselves on our own recognizance.”
Gale Snoats: “What Evelle here is trying to say is that we felt that the institution no longer had anything to offer us.”
5. “This whole dream, was it wishful thinking? Was I just fleeing reality like I know I’m liable to do? But me and Ed, we can be good too. And it seemed real. It seemed like us and it seemed like, well, our home. If not Arizona, then a land not too far away. Where all parents are strong and wise and capable and all children are happy and beloved. I don’t know. Maybe it was Utah.” – H.I. McDunnough
Funny Raising Arizona Quotes That’ll up Your Energy
6. FBI Investigator: “Is it true your name was originally ‘Nathan Huffheinz?’”
Nathan Arizona, Sr.: “Yeah, what of it?”
FBI Investigator: “Why did you change it?”
Nathan Arizona, Sr.: “Would you buy furniture from a place called ‘Unpainted Huffheinz?’”
7. “Son, you got a panty on your head.” – Truck Driver
8. “Give me that baby, you warthog from Hell!” – Edwina McDunnough
9. Gale Snoats: “Alight, ya hayseeds, it’s a stick-up. Everybody freeze. Everybody down on the ground.”
Bank Customer: “Well, which is it, young fella? You want me to freeze or get down on the ground? Mean to say, if I freeze, I can’t rightly drop. And if I drop, I’m gonna be in motion.”
10. “I just couldn’t understand it. That this woman, who looked as fertile as the Tennessee Valley, could not bear children. But the doctor explained that her insides were a rocky place where my seed could find no purchase.” – H.I. McDunnough
Raising Arizona Quotes to Keep Your Mind Occupied
11. “Cops won’t find your boy. A cop couldn’t find his butt if it had a bell on it.” – Leonard Smalls
12. “That’s your forte, ain’t it? Chasing down crooks and Commies. That’s your whole ‘raison d’être,’ ain’t it?” – Nathan Arizona, Sr.
13. “We figured there was too much happiness here for just the two of us, so we figured the next logical step was to have us a critter.” – H.I. McDunnough
14. “Well, ma’am, I don’t know much, but I do know human beings. You brought back my boy, so you must have your good points, too. I sure hate to think of Florence leaving me. I do love her so. You can go out the way you came in. Oh, and before you do another foolish thing like busting up, I suggest you sleep on it. At least for one night.” – Nathan Arizona, Sr.
15. “Sometimes it’s a hard world for small things.” – H.I. McDunnough
More Raising Arizona Quotes for Something to Reflect On
16. “Biology and the prejudices of others conspired to keep us childless.” – H.I. McDunnough
17. “Name’s Smalls. Leonard Smalls. My friends call me Lenny—only I ain’t got no friends.” – Leonard Smalls
18. “H.I., you’re young and you got your health, what you want with a job?” – Evelle Snoats
19. Evelle Snoats: “These blow up into funny shapes and all?”
Clerk: “Well, no—unless round is funny.”
20. Prison Counselor: “Most men your age, Hi, are getting married and raising up a family.”
H.I. McDunnough: “Well factually, the—.”
Prison Counselor: “They wouldn’t accept prison as a substitute. Would any of you men care to comment?”
Gale Snoats: “Well, sometimes your career’s gotta come before family.”
Evelle Snoats: “Work’s what’s kept us happy.”
Are You a Fan of Dark Comedies?
Raising Arizona is one of the Coen brothers’ best dark comedies ever released. What made it so is H.I. McDunnough’s goal of stopping the cycle of being in and out of prison and becoming a good family man.
However, his plans to become what he thinks is a decent and respectable man go awry when he and his wife find out they can’t have children. In truth, Edwina was infertile, and they also couldn’t adopt because of Hi’s past. This resulted in the couples’ feelings of hopelessness.
In true dark comedy fashion, Hi and Edwina succumb to their goal’s futility, resulting in the kidnapping of another couple’s child. The two felt it was unfair that their past mistakes—and even things beyond their control, like infertility—would hinder the happiness they could get for the rest of their lives. Yes, their actions led to many hilarious scenes, but it also makes us ask: will we be prisoners of our past forever?
We aren’t, and we shouldn’t. As humans, it’s natural for us to make mistakes, but it’s also expected of us to grow, improve, and become better human beings as we move forward in life. So, let’s not hinder ourselves from experiencing contentment and joy just because we’ve failed in the past.
In the same way, like what we’ve learned from Raising Arizona, we shouldn’t judge people based on their wrongdoings. Kidnapping or any other sort of crime will never be acceptable. But, remember that people can change for the better, too!
