Blood Simple (1984)

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General		Extras
Category	Drama	Main Menu Audio & Animation Gallery-Photo Theatrical Trailer
Rating
Year Of Production	1984
Running Time	91
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Language Select Then Menu
Region Coding	2,4	Directed By	Joel Coen Ethan Coen
Studio Distributor	Universal Pictures Home Video	Starring	John Getz Frances McDormand Dan Hedaya M. Emmet Walsh Samm-Art Williams Deborah Neumann Raquel Gavia Van Brooks Seņor Marco William Creamer Loren Bivens Bob McAdams Shannon Sedwick
Case	?
RPI	$19.95	Music	Carter Burwell Jim Roberge

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) Italian Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.85:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	1.85:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	Italian Swedish Norwegian Danish Finnish Polish	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    The Coen brothers (Joel and Ethan) are one of the most enduring sibling cinematic teams. Over the last 20 years they have brought us some of the most exciting and energised Hollywood movies including Millers Crossing, Intolerable Cruelty and the multi-Academy award winning Fargo.

    The Coen name is usually a guarantee of a killer script, some natty performances and an abundance of style. Their first film was Blood Simple made in 1984. Screening on the festival circuit in Australia, it was greeted with the same enthusiasm which would later attach to Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs. For all its style, however, Blood Simple is probably more mainstream in its approach than their later films. Although it has moments of humour it lacks the zaniness of such Coen films as Raising Arizona and The Hudsucker Proxy. It is at heart a tribute to the American film noir of the 1940s and 50s.

    In the deep heart of Texas, Ray (John Getz) and Abby (Francis McDormand) are having an affair. Unbeknownst to them they are being followed and photographed by a private detective (M.Emmet Walsh) engaged by Abby's husband, Marty (Dan Hedaya). Marty doesn't take too kindly to his wife messing around, particularly as Ray is an employee at Marty's saloon. Wracked by jealousy and anger he steps over the line, authorising the private detective to kill the adulterous pair. What follows is an old fashion noir romp with double crossings and confusion piling up to undermine the perfect plan. To tell any more of the wicked story would be to spoil a carefully plotted drama.

    Blood Simple was made on a shoestring with a cast of unknowns - it was McDormand's first role. Whilst the film is more restrained in its visual style than later Coen efforts, there is still an abundance of interesting camera angles and tricks which heighten the impact of a very dry and spare script. The film moves with a restless energy that it can barely contain and the Texan heat finds a counterpoint in the frequent ceiling fan motifs. Some of the fashions and hairstyles have dated since the film was made but Blood Simple is just as enjoyable today as when it first came out. The hair-raising realization that every character is working at cross purposes makes for a devilishly clever experience for the audience. M. Emmet Walsh is brilliant as the sleazy investigator and it is he that explains the title - where blood is involved people start to go a little crazy. They make mistakes, and it is the mistakes, not the crime which condemn us. In Blood Simple we see relationships, dreams and perfect plans come unstuck through fear and simple errors. Anyone who likes their thrillers low rent will get great satisfaction out of Blood Simple.

Video

    Blood Simple was shot on 35mm film at an original aspect ratio of 1.85:1. It comes to DVD in that same ratio and is 16x9 enhanced.

    The film was created on a low budget and it shows in the average picture quality. Having said that, the ingenuity of the camera work, from Men in Black director Barry Sonnenfeld, makes up for any technical flaws. The image is a little soft, however, there is no aliasing to speak of. There are artefacts throughout the film, but they are only occasionally a distraction. The Coens use neon and garish colours to give an interesting colour palette to the movie although the colours are a bit washed out with age.

    All in all the transfer is the best that could be hoped for in this release. Be warned - the layer change for this disc comes in at 45.35 like a heart seizure.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio for Blood Simple is provided in English and Italian Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) mixes. For most of the time this is more than the film needs, however the surrounds are still welcome in those scenes where there is some loud music playing and particularly in a pivotal scene where a shovel is scraped across a bitumen surface.

    The dialogue is generally clear and audible although it must be said that both Getz and Hedaya are fans of the mumble.

    Blood Simple was the first score composed by long time Coen brothers associate Carter Burwell who not only created the exceptional score for Fargo but also Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. The score is an enjoyable combination of piano and some strings and the rest of the film is punctuated with popular songs.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Main Menu Audio & Animation

    The Menu animation is a simple title screen accompanied by music from the film.

Gallery-Photo

    The photo gallery is basic consisting of only a few stills from the movie.

Theatrical Trailer

    The trailer is quite interesting as it is introduced by the fictional Loring.

    In 2000 Blood Simple was re-released in cinemas as a Director's Cut. Interestingly, that cut reduced the length of the film rather than extended it and made a change in one of the songs used in the film. Although the case does not say so, the version on this DVD would seem to be the Director's Cut as it features the inserted song. The Region 1 disc has a commentary of sorts. The track is provided by Kenneth Loring of Forever Young Films. The film company and Loring are both fictional. He is an actor working from a script apparently written by the Coen brothers. Apparently the commentary is hilarious as he describes the film in blockbuster terms. For completeness you may wish to pick up that version, however, for the film itself the Region 4 is the first choice. Further, some research suggests that the Region 1 is all on a single layered disc which results in a low bit rate transfer.

    Blood Simple was an auspicious debut for the Coen brothers. Whilst paying respect to the noir films of the past, its combination of highly stylized visuals and an abundance of energy gives the film a real drive that makes it just as enjoyable to watch some 20 years after it debuted. Although the transfer is not stunning, it is about the best that could be expected from this low budget film. Any fan of the Coen brothers should add this to their collection and anyone who likes exciting and dark thrillers will get a real buzz from Blood Simple.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall