I didn't realize this but the Coen Brothers didn't work as a director tag team until 2004 with The Ladykillers. Prior to that Joel got director credit, Ethan produced and both shared the writing duties, although I get the impression that the titles were just a formality and that both had their say behind the camera. The Coen Brothers debut film was Blood Simple, a dark film noir that explores several themes that are prevalent in their later films, namely violence and a comedy of mishaps and misunderstanding, to a lesser extent chance and fate.
Blood Simple tells the story of a man who hires someone to kill his wife and her lover, but things never go as smoothly as planned. Much of the film revolves around each of the characters knowing something that another does not. Watching the movie unfold, we see and know everything that is going on which makes the characters' actions seem all the more maddening and tragic. For instance, in a prolonged scene in the middle there is a misunderstanding between the two lovers as the man thinks she has done something that she hasn't. He takes measures in covering for her except that she has no idea what is going on. When they meet again, it would be so easy for him to ask her, "Did you do it?" or "Why did you do it?" or make any reference to "it." Instead, he is vague and ambiguous and distanced from her driving them apart. She in turn begins to suspect that he has been up to something and it's all so frustrating to watch because it's just one big misunderstanding.
I really liked how the movie flowed. It sort of goes by slowly and has these sudden bursts of violence and moments of shock. I like that it takes its time and doesn't rush anything and the ending has so much suspense and is so well shot. I loved it.
Watching this film was sort of like watching those old noir films with the shady underhanded characters, the plot of murder, affair, and intrigue and the incredibly dark setting. The four main characters are the sleazy bar owner, the cheating wife, the jealous lover and the crooked private investigator. Everyone was great in their roles.
The film has a pretty unique style; it's almost as if the Coen brothers wanted you to know how bold they are. The camera moves quite a bit and uses strange camera angles. The phrase "self-conscious" is used a lot in describing Blood Simple. I'm not really sure what that means; perhaps it means that it is well aware of how different it feels and wants you to come along for the ride and embrace it.
Grade: A-
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