The Cohen brothers did a marvellous job in delivering a suspenseful film noir in which a tavern owner named Julian Marty (Dan Hedaya) is betrayed by his wife Abby (Frances McDormand) who is having an extra marital affair with one of Julian's tavern employee's named Ray (John Getz). Julian wants to confirm his suspicions so he hires an overweight and slimy private detective named Loren Visser (M. Emmet Walsh) to follow his wife Abby to see if she is in fact involved in a sexual relationship with Ray.Not only does Loren Visser confirm Julian's worst suspicions about his wife Abby's sexual relationship with Ray, Loren gleefully provides to Julian some compromising photographs of Abby and Ray that take Julian by surprise and lead to his wanting to confront his wife Abby about her affair. Julian's reaction to seeing those dirty photos sends him over the edge and when his attempt to physically pull Abby out of the arms of her lover Ray fails, Julian reluctantly seeks the assistance of the slimy private detective Loren Visser once again. Julian wants Loren Visser to murder his wife Abby and her lover Ray and do away with their bodies where no one will ever find them.The plot thickens and the four main characters in this Cohen brother film noir being Abby (Frances McDormand), her lover Ray (John Getz), Abby's revenge filled husband Julian (Dan Hedaya), and the overweight slimy Private Detective Loren Visser (M. Emmett Walsh) who Julian hires carry this film from beginning to end with a generous amount of intrigue sprinkled in as well as to whom really betrays whom. This is in my humble opinion an under rated film noir and respecting of more recognition than the over rated (1990) Millers Crossing. I thought Dan Hedaya's portrayal of the tavern owner Julian Marty whose employee barman and wife are having an illicit affair right under his nose and in his attempt to seek revenge results in his own destruction is poignant. The betrayal by all four of the key characters is what makes this Cohen brothers film deserving of belonging in the criterion collection. I give this fast paced film noir a nine (9) out of ten (10) rating. Dan Hedaya was definitely robbed and should have been Oscar nominated for either a Best Actor or at least Best Supporting Actor for his emotional and vengeful portrayal of Julian Marty.

It really shows that this is the first film the Coen brothers made. While it is watchable, and some parts do becoming gripping, this ultimately is a film i have no desire to re-watch.The script is decent for the most part, but there are some of the cheesiest scenes that I've seen in a long time sprinkled in the movie. The themes of what is good, and what is right, money is the root of evil, and people in positions they are woefully unfit for are prevalent throughout this film. The characters are well written, and you understand all their motivations, however I find pretty much everyone in this movie to be quite bland, but that's probably because the acting is atrocious. The best actor in the movie bar none is M. Emmet Walsh. He is the only person in the movie that actually has fun with the role. Everyone else sounds like they are just reading off of a script from start to finish, and in a contest to see how serious they can sound. There are two stand out moments when Walsh has a scene with Dan Hedaya, and later Frances Mcdormand that features really good acting for the most part, and a sense of atmosphere, but that's really it.I was shocked when i saw that Barry Sonnenfeld was the director for cinematography because it's all over the place, it really feels like a mixed bag of sorts. There are a couple of good shots, some decent shots, and then some really bad shots. Like i said, it just jumps around all over the movie. You go from long continuous shots with an almost speed up pace, to drawn out scenes with jump cuts galore. The editing is pretty bad in my opinion.Like wise, i was equally shocked when i saw Carter Burwell made the music. I don't know what exactly he was thinking, but this soundtrack is laughable. It sounds like the music you would hear when you walk through the living room and your mom is watching one of those Saturday night LMN movies. It just does not work here at all to me.I do like the special effects they use. It looks very nice, and apart from one scene where it's very obvious that it's not blood, it works throughout the movie.This is something that i would expect to see as a made for TV movie from 1998, however as it was the Coen's first movie i wasn't expecting a masterpiece to begin with. I'm glad i can add this to my Watchlist, and i encourage anyone would loves the Coen's to see it, but i'll stick to their later, more refined works.

I saw Blood Simple in 1984 and it became immediately one of my favorite movies. I watched it a lot of times since and always found new subtleties at each viewing. Though it could maybe bore people that are used to more mainstream Coen movies, Blood Simple is a remarkable piece of indie art, with a surprising maturity for a first try. Every shot, every editing, every line, every set is skillfully designed with an obvious talent that transcends the classic Noir mainframe. With its hypnotizing pace and music, it delivers a really original experience that gets better and better with time. Even if their later work was always OK (even if I'm really not a fan of their burlesque approach of comedy) the Coen brothers have never been more inspired and inventive than on their three first movies. I hope you'll enjoy Blood Simple as much as I do !

The story is awfully simple: Marty, a Texas bar owner and betrayed husband (Dan "Usual Suspects" Hedaya) hires the private eye to kill his unfaithful wife Abby (Frances McDormand) and her lover Ray (John "The Fly" Getz) who's also Marty's employee. The eye pretends to do the job and shows Marty some fake photographs showing the lovers shot dead in bed. He takes the money, then he shoots his hirer right away and disappears. Ray, who doesn't know about the detective's existence, discovers Marty's almost dead body. For him, no doubt: it's Abby who did this work... He takes him away in order to bury him far away from the bar, and finds out that Marty isn't dead yet. He's forced to bury him alive, offering us the most nightmarish scene of the film....The movie is a real visual and sound shock. The script is incredibly original and brings some freshness in usual cinema stuff dealing with unfaithful characters ready to kill each other in order to avoid all the difficulties linked to divorce. The ambiance and atmosphere is the ones of a real bad dream, a nightmare, and the fact that the story takes place in an early, gray place in Texas (don't miss the hilarious prologue), where everything weird can happen very normally, adds to it. And the soundtrack by Carter Burwell is extraordinary, this is what he did first and best for the Coen brothers. It captures everything of the movie and makes the nightmare become really true. All in all, "Blood Simple" is a very intriguing and suspenseful film, and totally entertaining. Highly recommended for a cold rainy night.Overall rating: 8 out of 10.