'Raising Arizona'

It's in movies like "Raising Arizona" where I can garner respect for an actor.

Like Nick Cage. The guy hasn't done a thing in his career that I would consider worthwhile. Except "Raising Arizona." I think he's great in it, but I think it's in spite of himself and more due to the burgeoning geniuses of the Coen brothers.

Now, actors and actresses flock to the modern auteurs like the Coens, Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, Martin Scorsese, Sofia Coppola and others because they can almost be guaranteed of a well-received film and probably a pretty nice role.

At the time, Cage probably didn't know what he was getting into. Looking back, it's his best role ever.

Nowadays, I can tell who takes their acting jobs seriously when they're signing up to do a Coen brothers film.