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Parents' Guide to

The Hudsucker Proxy

By Brian Costello, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 13+

Dark Coen Brothers screwball comedy has suicide, smoking.

Movie PG 1994 111 minutes
The Hudsucker Proxy Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

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age 14+

Based on 1 parent review

KH8
KH8 Parent of 10 and 13-year-old
March 27, 2022
age 14+

Fun and unique but with dark topics

Suicide is a major plot-driver, so be prepared for complicated questions from younger kids. It is a dark comedy, which can also be confusing for the younger ones and definitely not every family's cup of tea. We watched with a 13-year-old and a 10-year-old. Both thought it was a fun movie and liked it. the older one pretty much got it all, although I did have to pause right at the start to explain what the intro narration meant and I had to explain some of the metaphors/expressionism. The younger one was frequently confused but enjoyed the humor and the tone enough to like it even with the confusion. This was one of my favorite movies when I was a teen, and it was fun to see how it was viewed by a new generation.
2 people found this helpful.
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What's the Story?

In THE HUDSUCKER PROXY, Norville Barnes (Tim Robbins) has just arrived in 1950s New York City from Muncie, Indiana with a head full of dreams and in need of a job. After struggling to find work, he takes a job in the mailroom of Hudsucker Industries. Meanwhile, in the middle of a boardroom meeting with the executives, company founder and president Waring Hudsucker (Charles Durning) unexpectedly commits suicide by jumping out of a top-floor window. The company's bylaws stipulate that Hudsucker's stock must be sold to the public upon his death, so in order to get around that, the unscrupulous executive Sidney Mussburger (Paul Newman) comes up with a scheme to depress the stock value by bringing on an unknown and incompetent person to act as head of the company. Mussburger finds his man when Norville enters his office with an extremely important "blue letter" to deliver. Norville is soon set up as the president of Hudsucker Industries, but Mussburger's plans are threatened by the fast-talking muckraking reporter Amy Archer (Jennifer Jason Leigh), as well as Norville's own ingenuity when his invention -- a drawing of a circle intended to be a toy for kids -- becomes a nationwide sensation. As the success goes to Norville's head, Archer fumes, and Mussburger schemes for a way to fire Norville and take control of Hudsucker Industries.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (1 ):
Kids say: Not yet rated

This dark parody reveals that, even in the "lesser works" of the vast Coen Brothers filmography, there's so much to enjoy. While rarely in anyone's Top 5 Coen Brothers movies, The Hudsucker Proxy, a celebration of the "screwball comedies" of mid-20th century is as hilarious as it is knowledgeable of what made the movies of Preston Sturges, Frank Capra, and Howard Hawks work as pure entertainment. The wisecracks, the character types (Steve Buscemi as a beatnik bar owner, for instance, or John Mahoney as the editor in chief), the irony and the occasional silliness, and the lowest lows and highest highs of the last 30 minutes reveal a deep knowledge and appreciation of these movies. As the jokes rapid-fire one after the other, it's easy to become sucked into the exaggerated and self aware world the Coen Brothers have created.

While one could argue that Tim Robbins doesn't quite pull off the "pure-hearted rube from the sticks" act, and that Jennifer Jason Leigh's Hepburn-esque (Katherine, not Audrey) affectations get to be a bit much, such arguments miss the point. These ironies and self awareness of the form are part of the overall enjoyment. Besides, it wasn't like great thespians landed all the roles in the screwball comedies of the past. It's not the best Coen Brothers movie, but it successfully conveys this idea of the screwball comedies that presented entertainment as a temporary respite from The Great Depression or World War II.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about dark comedies. What are some of the ways in which this movie finds humor in topics and behavior that aren't thought of as funny?

  • How does The Hudsucker Proxy parody the style and behavior of characters in the "screwball comedies" of the mid-20th century?

  • What are some of the ways in which this is reflective of the style of a "Coen Brothers movie?" What are some examples of other directors or actors known for having a distinctive style?

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