Rating: 
Summary: EXCITING READING
Review: THIS VIDEO HAS TWISTS AND TURNS AND IS VERY EXCITING. KEEPS YOU GLUED TO THE VIDEO UNTIL THE END. WHEN YOU THINK YOU HAVE IT FIGURED OUT, YOU DON'T. DON'T WATCH IT ALONE!!
Rating: 
Summary: Blood Simple at Last!
Review: Fortunately for everyone a decision was made to re-release Blood Simple in theaters. 16 years ago when it was in first run I was barely aware of it. There were so many good reviews of the film I decided to go catch it. Blood Simple was the best film I saw in 2000. Until now there has been no DVD available in the U.S. A very grainy poor quality pan and scan copy is being sold in the UK. It just isn't an option to purchase a pan and scan with this movie. The Coen brothers gorgeous cinematography makes full use of the entire frame. It is a noir style film so much of the imagery is in darkened bars and at night. But the color and light in the movie is really beautiful. This film has deserved a good treatment and now with this Director's cut it is finally getting one. One of the odd things about this Director's cut is it is the same length as the original version. Footage has been taken out and not added. The missing time is made up with an introduction by the Coen Brothers explaining that the film has been re-edited to take advantage of new technological advances not available when the film was first shot. This is sort of a joke similar to the opening of Fargo where a title card states, "Based upon a true story". Fargo is not based on a true story. They just thought it would be a better story if people thought it was true when they watched it. Ha Ha. Blood Simple's re-edit was a simple edit to tighten up the pace which was sometimes a little slow in the original version. Made for only two million dollars Blood Simple is a stunning achievement, all the more so because it was the Coen's first film. Stylish photography plays with not just light and shadow as in most noir, but color as well. But what drives this film is suspense mistrust and double dealing. I smile when I occasionally spot a criticism of this film is "its almost too clever" and "too perfect". Blood Simple is fantastic at its clever choreography of events and placement of objects in relation to the actors that really adds to the tension and excitement. If thats too clever then spare me the dumbed down version. I love it. The acting is quite good. Its most interesting to see Frances McDormand, looking much younger and quite pretty, was obviously talented even back then. Blood Simple is often very disturbing. Especially good is a creepy scene in a moonlit field involving two men a burlap sack and a shovel. The violence in this scene as in much of Blood Simple is largely psychological. It was interesting to discover from an Amazon customer from Germany that they have a high quality widescreen DVD available in his country. But while they can buy it and watch it, German law forbids export of films which contained violence. He offered to bring a copy in his suitcase as he happened to be visiting my city. We couldn't work it out logistically but fortunately for the rest of you, you soon won't have to go to such great lengths to get a copy.
Rating:
Summary: The noir classic for the post-modern generation
Review: This is one of my favorite films of the 80's, and it is considered as one of the best independent films ever. Well-deserving of its standing as a noir classic, the Coen brothers have now re-released a restored "director's cut" for a whole new generation of film lovers to admire on the occasion of its 15th anniversary. "Blood Simple" was the Coens' debut feature and it displayed their sharp wit, edgy cleverness, and technical inventiveness, but more importantly, it promised an immense potential that they would later deliver and then some. Watching it again, I couldn't stop noticing its influence on noir films of the 90's. "Bound", "The Last Seduction", "One False Move" and "Red Rock West" are the examples that come immediately to mind of films informed by Blood Simple. Moreover, the Coens' self-conscious style of filmmaking, which was foreign to casual moviegoers back in the 80's, is now so standard that it has become a cliche in our post-modern 90's. There are so many good things about the film but the best thing is that there are absolutely no holes in this script. All the characters' motivations and actions are believable and not contrived solely to move from plot point to plot point. The performances of Dan Hedaya and M. Emmet Walsh are also remarkable, and they provide deliciously sleazy fun. The re-released version is prefaced by an introduction from a film historian whose comments provide an excellent example of the Coens' uniquely self-conscious brand of humour.
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Summary: Blood Simply Brilliant
Review: Blood Simple is not as polished as its most obvious successor, Fargo, but the gritty look and feel of this low-budget wonder is half the fun. The dark humor of the movie is very sly and makes heavy use of the stylistic visuals. The idependent film made its debut at Sundance, where is was a huge success and planted the seed for the career of the Coen bothers, the most creative and distinct filmmakers in America today. This is one of their best works.
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Summary: Stunning Debut by the Coen Brothers
Review: Blood Simple has long been hailed a classic and rightfully so. This tale of deceipt and murder is brought to the screen in stark, noir fashion. But it isn't merely an homage to noir but a superior example of the genre. When Marty (Dan Hedaya) hires an old P.I. to murder his cheating wife and her lover the fun truly begins, because the hired gun has plans of his own. The suspense and dark nastiness are alleviated by the unique Coen brothers comic touch. A mind bender ahead of its time for fans of mystery, suspense, and just plain old good moviemaking.
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Summary: a simply brilliant "B" noir...
Review: Released in '85, this was the first by the Coen brothers, and still my favorite of their films. It's really low-budget, and may not have the polish of their later work, but it has a riveting rawness to it and gets better with each viewing (and one should see it several times to fully appreciate the many details). Set in Texas, it has a terrific plot and dialogue, which revolves around a saloon owner (deliciously played by Dan Hedaya), his unfaithful wife (Frances McDormand), and her lover (John Getz). It has one of the greatest character actors ever, M. Emmet Walsh, in one of his very best parts...as the sleaziest private eye this side of a sewer. It's a fabulous performance. No matter how many times I see this, I still marvel at its cleverness. The cinematography by Barry Sonnefeld (who also did "Misery") is sensational, and the subtle soundtrack by Carter Burwell is also good. I love the contrast of the gorgeous "Rogaciano" playing in the distance in the final rather grizzly scene ! If you like noir, don't miss this "who's dead now ?" thriller.
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Summary: Diverting and original, but a little too slick
Review: Joel and Ethan Coen made their cinematic debut in this well-plotted, diabolical thriller about a Texas saloon owner (Marty, played by Dan Hedaya) who hires a morally deranged private eye (M. Emmet Walsh) to murder both his two-timing wife (Abby, played by Joel Coen's significant other, Frances McDormand) and her lover (Ray, played by John Getz). This is one of those movies that looks good as you're watching it; it's even amazing how it all fits together; but later you look back and see how contrived it was. Everything is set up a little too well, with the viewer aware of so many things the characters are not, for example where the Zippo lighter is and how many bullets are left in the revolver and how the gun got to be where it is. That's the sort of thing good writers are supposed to do: start, or at least place themselves, at the end and then work backward. Problem is, you can get too cute, and that's what happens to Coen and Coen here. If everything is too pat and works too well, the viewer is left with an empty feeling of having been hustled by contrivance. McDormand, lately seen in as the homespun pregnant police chief in Fargo (1996) also directed by Coen, does a good job here of looking like a cheap and easy woman with strong survival instincts. Getz seems just about as stupid as his character needs to be. (His attempted cover-up of the murder was worthy of an appearance on "America's Dumbest Criminals.") Hedaya as the sleazy saloon keep is particularly slimy, and M. Emmet Walsh in his VW beetle with the doll with lighted boobs hanging from the rear view mirror is fully degenerate in that old Southern style. Some annoyances: Why do Abby and Ray sleep and mate with the blinds up so the P.I. can conveniently photograph them? (Who does THAT?) Did I lose track of the number of bullets left in the revolver or was there a gap in their placement, and even if there really was one left at the end why doesn't Abby wait until she can see him to shoot, and how come she doesn't check to see if the gun is loaded? And how come the window is about four inches open, instead of closed or open more, after Abby climbs out the bathroom window into it; and how come Walsh is feeling around in the window? Is he using his hand as bait? Coen and Coen admitted in a recent article in the New Yorker that this was not their best work, and had they been more experienced, they would have done it differently. Of course. But there is an undercurrent of black humor and irony and a whole slew of original touches (the car and the car's tracks in the farmer's field at break of day, the quiet rural Texas roads at night, the dead fish on the desk, etc.) that suggest a rare cinematic talent in the making. Fargo (1996) was a mature expression of that talent. It will be interesting to see what they do next. Regardless, this is already a cult classic and the kind of movie that afficionados understandably like to own. If you're a film noir fan, you should definitely see this, despite its acknowledged shortcomings.
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Summary: Great directorial debut for the Cohen brothers
Review: This is a great film from one (two) of America's finest filmakers. I can't believe how young Frances Mcdormand looks!!
Rating:
Summary: One of the greatest debuts in film history
Review: I had the fortune of seeing a new print of the film this past summer on a big screen and it has never looked or sounded better. The film requires multiply viewing in order to catch all of the hidden subtleties and nuances. While the Coens reworked many elements even more affectively in Fargo, Blood Simple still remains a landmark achievement. Wonderful acting by John Getz, Frances Mcdormand, Dan Hedaya and M. Emmett Walsh as the slimey private investigator. Astonishing cinematography by Barry Sonnenfeld, a haunting score by Carter Burwell and the Coens unique direction and dark humor to create one of the best modern "film noir" viewing experiences ever.
Rating: 
Summary: In The Beginning
Review: I am a Big Coehn Brothers fan. If a new movie comes out i'm always first in line. I love their style, dialogue and dark atmosphere that somehow stays light. But, i jsut don't like this movie. AS their first venture into feature film this movie is a little shaky. THe whole thing is very slow moving and i had a hard time sitting through it. However in the movies favor i was stuck watching it becasue i wanted to know what happened next. So it's boring but strangely engrossing. It was predictable, what you think will happen next does. THere were a coupel parts that i genuinely liekd and was happy with, but overall the movie was a let down. For one the acting is pretty good to quite good, and the scenes are very well shot and kinda sorta suspensful. Meaning the use of shadow and timing makes them very eerie. THe end bathroom scene was pretty great in how it works out. So i guess i would actually rate it 3 stars for myself, but for everyone else i'd say it's a 2 stars. It's a dark coehn movie tho, so be prepared for blood and violence. Lastly let me say, a lot of people love this moive, enough for it to get relrelased and given a good dvd, so perhaps i'm just stupid. If you really love mysterys then rent this bad boy and be prepared for a mediocre ride through suspense and murders.
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