Blood Simple. (1984)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Joel Coen

Writers:

Joel Coen (written by) &
Ethan Coen (written by)

Release Date:

18 January 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Breaking up is hard

Plot:

A rich but jealous man hires a private investigator to kill his cheating wife and her new man. But, when blood is involved, nothing is simple.

Plot Keywords:

Stabbing | Crime Gone Awry | Violence | Ceiling Fan | Psychopath

Awards:

4 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

John Getz	...	Ray
Frances McDormand	...	Abby
Dan Hedaya	...	Julian Marty
M. Emmet Walsh	...	Loren Visser
Samm-Art Williams	...	Meurice
Deborah Neumann	...	Debra
Raquel Gavia	...	Landlady
Van Brooks	...	Man from Lubbock
Señor Marco	...	Mr. Garcia
William Creamer	...	Old Cracker
Loren Bivens	...	Strip-Bar Exhorter
Bob McAdams	...	Strip-Bar Exhorter
Shannon Sedwick	...	Stripper
Nancy Finger	...	Girl on Overlook
William Preston Robertson	...	Radio Evangelist (voice)

Runtime:

99 min | 94 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital (re-release) | Ultra Stereo

Certification:

Australia:R | Netherlands:16 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:18 | Brazil:16 | Argentina:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Norway:16 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

Foxton Entertainment

Trivia:

Jim Piddock provided the voice of fictional film historian "Kenneth Loring" on the DVD audio commentary track, which was scripted by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: After Marty tries to attack his wife outside Ray's house, he walks across the lawn to his van. For a split second the camera rig comes into shot on the right hand side of the screen.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Private Detective Visser: [narrating] The world is full o' complainers. An' the fact is, nothin' comes with a guarantee. Now I don't care if you're the pope of Rome, President of the United States or Man of the Year; somethin' can all go wrong. Now go on ahead, y'know, complain, tell your problems to your neighbor, ask for help, 'n watch him fly. Now, in Russia, they got it mapped out so that everyone pulls for everyone else... that's the theory, anyway. But what I know about is Texas, an' down here... you're on your own.

Movie Connections:

References Double Indemnity (1944)

Soundtrack:

He'll Have To Go

A Dark Little Gem

The Coen Brothers first commercial film tells a noirish tale of murder, double-cross, and betrayal in small town America. A greasy small-town Texas saloon owner discovers his wife is having an affair with one of his bartenders. He hires the private detective that documented the affair to kill the couple. But the PI has different plans, and then everything starts going wrong, very wrong. The acting is great especially M. Emmett Walsh as the double-crossing PI. The direction and camera work presage the Coens subsequent work.

This movie is a treat of a rental if you can find it. It's worth looking for.