Blu-ray Review
Blood Simple
Directed by: Joel Coen Cast: John Getz, Frances McDormand, Dan Hedaya, Samm-Art Williams, M. Emmet Walsh Running Time: 1 hr 35 mins Rating: R Due Out: August 30, 2011
PLOT: Things go wrong when a man (Hedaya) hires a sleazy private investigator (Walsh) to kill his wife (McDormand) and the man (Getz) she is sleeping with.
WHO'S IT FOR? Collectors of Coen movies should definitely pick this one up, unless they've already got the DVD. Fans of independent American cinema would be wise to have this movie in their brain.
MOVIE:
This is where it all started. For the reason alone of starting the Coen Brothers off on a legendary filmography, Blood Simple is worth a viewing. It doesn't fly by like some of the movies that would come after it, but it does maintain the original script tightness that makes Coen movies so genuine.
M. Emmet Walsh is a stand out in this film, beginning an entire special legacy for the Coens of creating strong roles for older actors. Walsh's private investigator character Visser is just like many of the memorable beings from the Coen universe - he's treated with a sense of humor, but also has the potential for extreme, non-gratuitous violence. Regardless of whatever shade Visser is being presented in by the Coens, he always has our eye.
As with other Coen DVDs, Blood Simple features a fake introduction by a pretentious film scholar named Kenneth Loring, who represents "Forever Young" films. Loring not only speaks for Blood Simple before the movie begins, but also during a commentary that is classic Coen humor. Loring shares the most useless of fake facts that would believed probably only by suckers.
The Coen Brothers openly show humble distaste for praise, and have little to no interest in acknowledging their praise or criticism. While they may not care to admit it, Blood Simple is legendary by association for all the room it left for the Coens to keep improving upon the potential of their unforgettable storytelling.
MOVIE SCORE: 7/10
EXTRAS
Theatrical Trailer Audio Commentary with Kenneth Loring of Forever Young Films