by Erin Smyth

Created on: August 15, 2009

With a few drawled out words from a seedy detective named Visser (M. Emmet Walsh, Blade Runner, Ordinary People, Straight Time) the Coen brother's remarkable film Blood Simple takes its first celluloid steps. From Visser's first few words, giving us a brief hint of what is to come, we find Bar worker Ray (John Getz) driving the boss' wife, Abby (Frances McDormand, Fargo) out of town. After having realized they are being followed, and also that the feelings of affection between them are mutual, Abby lets go of her plans of escape in order to backtrack to a motel and spend the rest of the night making love with Ray.

This indiscretion is soon told, and shown via photographs, to Abby's husband Marty (Dan Hedaya) by Visser, the man who had been following the now not so secret lovers. Trying to offer some comfort to Marty, the private investigator consoles that at least his wife is not sleeping with a colored man as was first suspected. Old prejudices have taken full root in Texas despite the fact that Marty's head bartender, Meurice is black. This offers little comfort to Marty, especially when Abby leaves him and moves in with Ray. To add insult to injury, Ray appears at the bar demanding his two weeks worth of pay.

In his slowly building rage, Ray contacts Visser once more, this time in order to 'arrange' Ray and Abby's death. For the price, Visser is more than tempted, instructing Marty to get out of town and get himself noticed while he takes care of business. Of course, in this throwback to the noir days of old, things do not go as planned and there are more than a few surprises for us viewers.

Blood Simple is the directing debut of Joel Coen, produced by Ethan Coen and written by both siblings. The film is set in Texas, primarily due to the fact that the state offered the right to pay and actors could be offered below union wages. Perhaps because the brothers earned most of the films production costs from their friends, doctors, entrepreneurs and their parents from the state of Minneapolis the look and feel of Blood Simple doesn't really suggest long, hot and languid days spend sitting on the porch sipping on a glass of lemonade. There is coolness to the film, aided maybe by the back stabbings and violent acts of its characters. While these are crimes of passion they feel a little detached, as if even the lust and desire is done from a certain apathy.

Still there is a fair amount of humor to be found here. Abby's late night discussion with Marty about her relationship with Marty and a trip to the psychiatrist is amusing and the use of such an upbeat song as The Same Old Song creates a certain unexpected element to the atmosphere.

The characters each possess a certain quality that garners our sympathies even the husband who desires that his 'irritation' be satisfied in the act of murder. The acting is also superb. The character that remains the strongest is probably McDormand's Abby. She is wholly likeable and possesses none of the usual femme fatale qualities. Visser is the character who probably will remain with the audience for the longest time after having seen the film. Walsh has a field day here in a role specifically written for him. He is revolting and pathetic at the same time, his words often hard to understand because of the seaminess that pervades them. The least compelling of the figures in the story, to me at least, was Ray. Getz was fine in the role but he seemed a little too simple in certain cases and existing primarily as only the man that lured Abby away from Marty. Then again maybe any man would have done in the long run.

The film works as a dark morality tale as well, one where honesty would have done a heck of a lot to prevent tragedy.

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