The first offerings of most filmmakers provide an interesting indication of the directions in which their future output is likely to develop. "Blood Simple" on the other hand is an example of a fully realised entity which contains so many of the qualities and stylistic touches which are now synonymous with the Coen Brothers' entire body of work that it's evident just how clear a vision they had of what they wanted to achieve right from the very start. For their debut, they brought to the screen a stereotypical film noir which contained familiar ingredients and themes, such as murder, betrayal, corruption, deceit, double crosses and plot twists and added black humour, gruesome violence and some compellingly eccentric characters.
The movie has a strong visual style which is produced by clever use of light, shadows and colour and also a variety of typical film noir camera angles. The disconcerting mood which this creates is also further enhanced by the predominantly laconic interactions between the characters and the fact that everyone in the movie is distrustful of everyone else. The screenplay is excellent and the amount of suspense and intrigue generated makes the story intense and very engaging throughout.
Texas bar owner Julian Marty (Dan Hedaya) harbours suspicions about his wife Abby (Frances McDormand) and hires seedy private detective Loren Visser (M.Emmet-Walsh) to follow her. When Visser's investigations reveal that Abby is having an affair with one of Marty's employees, a barman called Ray (John Getz), Marty responds by offering Visser $10,000 to kill the couple. The private detective subsequently doctors a photograph he'd taken of Abby and Ray together to give the appearance that they'd been killed and meets with Marty to collect his money. Marty accepts the photograph as authentic and duly pays Visser his fee. When the transaction is complete, Visser promptly shoots Marty in the chest and leaves the gun (which belongs to Abby) close by.
The circumstances of Marty's murder lead to a sequence of misunderstandings and complications. Initially when Ray arrives at the crime scene and sees Abby's gun, he quickly deduces that she must've killed her husband and so he tries to cover up her crime. He moves the body which he intends to bury, into his car and drives down a highway but discovers that Marty (who had appeared to be dead) is still living. Ray goes ahead anyway and buries Marty alive.
Later, when Ray tells Abby what he's done to protect her and she doesn't understand, he assumes that she's being deceitful and this impression is reinforced sometime afterwards when she takes a silent telephone call which he assumes is from another lover. When Abby goes to the bar to check on what Ray has told her, she gets the impression that he must've gone to see Marty and got involved in a fight over the amount of wages which were due to him.
More serious trouble for the couple develops, however, when Visser realises that he's left a clue to his guilt at Marty's bar and sets about tying up all the loose ends. This involves the planned elimination of Abby and Ray and eventually brings the action to its gripping and very original climax.
Ray's an extremely familiar type of noir character as he's an ordinary guy who's unwittingly drawn into a situation which he doesn't understand, where events go increasingly out of control and where he isn't able to do anything to prevent matters from getting even worse. John Getz is suitably unpretentious in this role and conveys his character's bewilderment and growing sense of anxiety with great skill. Frances McDormand is also wonderfully understated as the adulterous Abby who's similarly baffled by what happens and frequently misunderstands what's going on.
Julian Marty is emotionally wounded, bitter and jealous and his powerful need for revenge drives him to seek the most violent and permanent solution possible. This is rather ironic considering his evident distaste for the course of action he's chosen and also the fact that he becomes physically sick on seeing Visser's photographs. Dan Hedaya portrays Marty's complex mixture of emotions very convincingly in a performance which contributes strongly to the success of the film.
The stand out performance of the movie is provided by M.Emmet-Walsh who, as the sly, sweaty and totally unscrupulous private detective exudes a brand of wickedness which conveys forcibly the thoroughly despicable nature of his character. His complete lack of morality also makes him very comfortable in his own skin and this quality together with his often jovial demeanour make him particularly disturbing and fascinating. Emmet-Walsh's ability to capture the whole range of this villain's characteristics is extremely impressive and compelling.
Considering its low budget and the Coen Brothers' lack of experience at the time when the film was made, "Blood Simple" is an extremely enjoyable and good quality movie.
The movie has a strong visual style which is produced by clever use of light, shadows and colour and also a variety of typical film noir camera angles. The disconcerting mood which this creates is also further enhanced by the predominantly laconic interactions between the characters and the fact that everyone in the movie is distrustful of everyone else. The screenplay is excellent and the amount of suspense and intrigue generated makes the story intense and very engaging throughout.
Texas bar owner Julian Marty (Dan Hedaya) harbours suspicions about his wife Abby (Frances McDormand) and hires seedy private detective Loren Visser (M.Emmet-Walsh) to follow her. When Visser's investigations reveal that Abby is having an affair with one of Marty's employees, a barman called Ray (John Getz), Marty responds by offering Visser $10,000 to kill the couple. The private detective subsequently doctors a photograph he'd taken of Abby and Ray together to give the appearance that they'd been killed and meets with Marty to collect his money. Marty accepts the photograph as authentic and duly pays Visser his fee. When the transaction is complete, Visser promptly shoots Marty in the chest and leaves the gun (which belongs to Abby) close by.
The circumstances of Marty's murder lead to a sequence of misunderstandings and complications. Initially when Ray arrives at the crime scene and sees Abby's gun, he quickly deduces that she must've killed her husband and so he tries to cover up her crime. He moves the body which he intends to bury, into his car and drives down a highway but discovers that Marty (who had appeared to be dead) is still living. Ray goes ahead anyway and buries Marty alive.
Later, when Ray tells Abby what he's done to protect her and she doesn't understand, he assumes that she's being deceitful and this impression is reinforced sometime afterwards when she takes a silent telephone call which he assumes is from another lover. When Abby goes to the bar to check on what Ray has told her, she gets the impression that he must've gone to see Marty and got involved in a fight over the amount of wages which were due to him.
More serious trouble for the couple develops, however, when Visser realises that he's left a clue to his guilt at Marty's bar and sets about tying up all the loose ends. This involves the planned elimination of Abby and Ray and eventually brings the action to its gripping and very original climax.
Ray's an extremely familiar type of noir character as he's an ordinary guy who's unwittingly drawn into a situation which he doesn't understand, where events go increasingly out of control and where he isn't able to do anything to prevent matters from getting even worse. John Getz is suitably unpretentious in this role and conveys his character's bewilderment and growing sense of anxiety with great skill. Frances McDormand is also wonderfully understated as the adulterous Abby who's similarly baffled by what happens and frequently misunderstands what's going on.
Julian Marty is emotionally wounded, bitter and jealous and his powerful need for revenge drives him to seek the most violent and permanent solution possible. This is rather ironic considering his evident distaste for the course of action he's chosen and also the fact that he becomes physically sick on seeing Visser's photographs. Dan Hedaya portrays Marty's complex mixture of emotions very convincingly in a performance which contributes strongly to the success of the film.
The stand out performance of the movie is provided by M.Emmet-Walsh who, as the sly, sweaty and totally unscrupulous private detective exudes a brand of wickedness which conveys forcibly the thoroughly despicable nature of his character. His complete lack of morality also makes him very comfortable in his own skin and this quality together with his often jovial demeanour make him particularly disturbing and fascinating. Emmet-Walsh's ability to capture the whole range of this villain's characteristics is extremely impressive and compelling.
Considering its low budget and the Coen Brothers' lack of experience at the time when the film was made, "Blood Simple" is an extremely enjoyable and good quality movie.