Blood Simple

1984
R
1h 39m

IMDb RATING

7.5/10

108K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

Play trailer1:51

Dark Comedy Crime Drama Thriller

The owner of a seedy small-town Texas bar discovers that one of his employees is having an affair with his wife. A chaotic chain of misunderstandings, lies, and mischief ensues after he devi... Read allThe owner of a seedy small-town Texas bar discovers that one of his employees is having an affair with his wife. A chaotic chain of misunderstandings, lies, and mischief ensues after he devises a plot to have them murdered.The owner of a seedy small-town Texas bar discovers that one of his employees is having an affair with his wife. A chaotic chain of misunderstandings, lies, and mischief ensues after he devises a plot to have them murdered.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.5/10

108K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

2,616

144

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 5 wins & 7 nominations

Radio Evangelist
(voice)
(as Rev. William Preston Robertson)

Holly Hunter

Helene Trend
(voice)
(uncredited)

Barry Sonnenfeld

Marty's Vomiting
(voice)
(uncredited)

Directors
- Joel Coen
- Ethan Coen
Writers
- Joel Coen
- Ethan Coen
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
On the advice of Sam Raimi, the Coens went door-to-door showing potential investors a two minute 'trailer' of the film they planned to make. They ultimately raised $750,000 in a little over a year, enough to begin production of the movie.

Goofs
The box of shells from which Abby dumps three live rounds is clearly labeled "blanks" and .32 caliber. Abby said earlier that the gun her husband gave her is a .38.

Quotes
[first lines]
Private Detective Visser: [narrating] The world is full o' complainers. An' the fact is, nothin' comes with a guarantee. Now I don't care if you're the pope of Rome, President of the United States or Man of the Year; somethin' can all go wrong. Now go on ahead, y'know, complain, tell your problems to your neighbor, ask for help, 'n watch him fly. Now, in Russia, they got it mapped out so that everyone pulls for everyone else... that's the theory, anyway. But what I know about is Texas, an' down here... you're on your own.

Crazy credits
Opening credits list the main cast, but none of the crew. All of the crew credits are at the end of the film, starting with Joel Coen as director.

Alternate versions
When Blood Simple was first released, two quotes appeared over black, before the opening credits. One was from Dashiell Hammet explaining what "blood simple" meant and the second was from Alfred Hitchcock about how difficult it really would be to kill a man.

Connections
Featured in At the Movies: Vision Quest/Turk 182/Blood Simple/Mischief (1985)

Soundtracks
It's the Same Old Song
By Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier and Brian Holland
Performed by The Four Tops
Used by Permission of Motown Record Corporation and Jobete Music Co., Inc.

User reviews392

Review

Featured review

9/10

brilliant noir

This film is the Coen brothers' homage to the great noir thrillers of the golden age. Cheating spouses, feckless private dicks, mistaken identities, a bundle of dirty cash are rendered to their bare essence in the mess of rotting fish sitting on Marty's desk. The film is notable as much for the audacity of the Coen brothers in getting it made as it is for its success in turning the broad, open expanses of west texas into a claustrophobia unknown even to Saddam in his spider hole. It appears the Coens made five minutes of the film to show to investors, though they had absolutely no idea what the rest of the film would look like. They basically sold the mood of the film, and their efforts bore fruit. The film established the Coen brothers as a creative force and Frances McDormand as a rising art house star whose journey would eventually garner Oscar for the Coens' "Fargo." I rate it highly for visual appeal, intelligent story and good sheer suspense and terror.