2023 Blind Spot Series: Blood Simple

-


What I knew going in: Apparently nothing.

Abby (Frances McDormand) is having an affair with Ray, (John Getz) a man that works for her husband Julian. (Dan Heyada) Juilan hires a seedy PI (M. Emmet Walsh) to follow them, and it all goes down hill from there.

The funny thing about this blind spot is I was sure I had seen part of it before, then when I started watching it absolutely nothing looked familiar. So I was clearly mixing it up with something else. That said, the Coen Brother's debut is something I've longed to see.

And it certainly is a debut. Very rough around the edges and not the most visually appealing, but you see the beginnings of what the Coen's will become as directors. The same goes for McDormand in her debut performance. She's the highlight of the film.

I can't say I loved this movie. It's very uneven. The best way I could describe it is that its "in between" moments aren't very compelling compared to the bigger story beats. The last 15 minutes however, is wonderful and tense.

Grade: B-

Comments

  1. SJHoneywellMay 31, 2023 at 9:04 AM

    I like this one more than you do, but I'm also very much an apologist for the Coens. Love the way it all works, and I really love what they did with M. Emmet Walsh--he's not a guy who normally exudes menace, but boy does he here.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJune 1, 2023 at 8:12 AM

      He was a massive creep in this! I do like the Coens too. Gotta rep my fellow upper Midwesterners.

      Delete
    2. SJHoneywellJune 1, 2023 at 2:03 PM

      I had no idea that you were in my neck of the woods, although it sounds like you're a little further north than I am (I'm just south of Wisconsin).

      Delete
    3. Brittani BurnhamJune 2, 2023 at 8:09 AM

      Nice! I'm from ND!

      Delete
  2. joel65913May 31, 2023 at 11:03 AM

    I saw this in the theatre on its initial release, it was being praised to the skies by critics so I was curious, while it was bumpy I definitely saw a lot of promise in it.

    But promising and great are two very different things and this wasn't great. Clever in parts but as you said uneven. But a fine start for the Coens and a nice showcase for Frances McDormand to start out in.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJune 1, 2023 at 8:11 AM

      I agree. I mean, how often is a debut film a completely knock out? It doesn't happen often.

      Delete
  3. BirgitMay 31, 2023 at 3:08 PM

    I have yet to see it. I don't think ibeven heard of it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. thevoid99May 31, 2023 at 5:14 PM

    I love this film. It is a phenomenal debut film that left me in chills in some spots while Frances McDormand is amazing. I think when it comes to the Coen Brothers. People will often think of them doing quirky films but then they do something like this or Miller's Crossing or No Country for Old Men as they're quite diverse. That's what I love about them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamJune 1, 2023 at 8:10 AM

      I think Miller's Crossing is what I was confusing this movie with. I definitely haven't seen all of that, but I will eventually check it out.

      Delete
    2. thevoid99June 1, 2023 at 8:26 PM

      I only have seven words to say about Miller's Crossing: Albert Finney. A Tommygun. And Danny Boy.

      Delete
    3. Brittani BurnhamJune 2, 2023 at 8:10 AM

      Sold.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Thanks for stopping by, let's talk movies!
(comments are moderated to reduce spam)

Popular posts from this blog

Random Ramblings: The Radio Flyer Conundrum

-
Image
Recently, I was talking to someone about who I thought were the best child actors when I was also a child.  Two that really stood out to me were Elijah Wood and Joseph Mazello, and one film those two were in together was called Radio Flyer.  Then I was reminded about the uniqueness of this film. Instead of reviewing the film, I wanted to have an open discussion about the ending. It deals with a tough issue; child abuse. What I’ve noticed is the way that the film ends is interpreted many different ways, and the filmmakers never came forward to say what was right and wrong. I’m interested in hearing everyone’s opinions on it. How did you interpret the ending? Obviously spoiler alerts will follow.. For those of you who haven’t seen the film, the basic premise is this: Two young boys, Mikey (Wood) and Bobby (Mazello) move in with their single mother and her boyfriend, who refers to himself as ‘The King’. It doesn’t take long for The King to start physically abusing ...
Read more

Indie Gems: Behind The Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon

-
Image
Passionate about your profession? I had never heard of this film until it ended up on one of Jason's favorite horror movie lists around Halloween. It immediately sounded interesting to me, so of course I threw it in my Netflix queue. (and if I'm just now watching it after adding it around Halloween, you know how ridiculous my queue is) Taylor (Angela Goethals) is a journalist who, along with a film crew decides to follow around a serial killer named Leslie Vernon. (Nathan Baesel) He plans on doing the typical slasher thing - getting a bunch of drunk teens in an abandoned house and knocking them off one by one. He gets advice from a retired serial killer, Eugene (Scott Wilson) and is threatened by a man who's on to him, Doc Holloran (Robert Englund) Taylor and crew are there capturing it all. Leslie Vernon is fucking hilarious to start with, and clearly very passionate about what he does. He tells Taylor all of his secrets and can barely contain his excitemen...
Read more

My Favorite Movie Youtube Channels

-
Image
Starting around 2018, I started watching Youtube for more than just movie trailers or music videos whenever a new one dropped. Now I'm in full blown subscription mode and don't bat an eyelash at watching a Youtube video that's over an hour long. I watch Youtube for a few different categories of content, but one of them that I love most is movie/TV essays and commentary, and that's what I'm going to talk about today. Below is a list of my favorite movie related Youtube channels. Let me know if you're familiar with them too, or if you have any you'd like to recommend to me.  Double Toasted - I'm honestly surprised this channel isn't bigger. I first came across Korey and Martin when they reviewed War for the Planet of the Apes a few months before it hit theaters and I thought they were hysterical. While their full length videos stream on Twitch, they often upload their movie reviews and commentary on youtube and they're always hilarious. They've...
Read more