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IMDbPro

Blood Simple

  • 19841984
  • RR
  • 1h 39m
IMDb RATING
7.6/10
96K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
4,073
366
Blood Simple (1984)
Trailer for Blood Simple
Play trailer1:51
3 Videos
99+ Photos
CrimeDramaThriller
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 devis... 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.
IMDb RATING
7.6/10
96K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
4,073
366
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Directors
      • Joel Coen
      • Ethan Coen(uncredited)
    • Writers
      • Joel Coen
      • Ethan Coen
    • Stars
      • John Getz
      • Frances McDormand
      • Dan Hedaya
    Top credits
    • Directors
      • Joel Coen
      • Ethan Coen(uncredited)
    • Writers
      • Joel Coen
      • Ethan Coen
    • Stars
      • John Getz
      • Frances McDormand
      • Dan Hedaya
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 360User reviews
    • 161Critic reviews
    • 83Metascore
    • Awards
      • 6 wins & 8 nominations

    Videos3

    Blood Simple
    Trailer 1:51
    Blood Simple
    Blood Simple
    Trailer 1:55
    Blood Simple
    A Guide to the Films of the Coen Brothers
    Clip 1:56
    A Guide to the Films of the Coen Brothers

    Photos278

    Frances McDormand in Blood Simple (1984)
    Dan Hedaya and Frances McDormand in Blood Simple (1984)
    M. Emmet Walsh in Blood Simple (1984)
    Dan Hedaya and M. Emmet Walsh in Blood Simple (1984)
    Blood Simple (1984)
    Blood Simple (1984)
    Blood Simple (1984)
    A1movie poster
    Affichette movie poster - 40 x 50 cm or app 16" x 21"
    M. Emmet Walsh in Blood Simple (1984)
    M. Emmet Walsh in Blood Simple (1984)
    Blood Simple (1984)

    Top cast

    Edit
    John Getz
    John Getz
    • Ray
    Frances McDormand
    Frances McDormand
    • Abby
    Dan Hedaya
    Dan Hedaya
    • Julian Marty
    M. Emmet Walsh
    M. Emmet Walsh
    • Private Detective Loren Visser
    Samm-Art Williams
    • Meurice
    Deborah Neumann
    • Debra
    Raquel Gavia
    • Landlady
    Van Brooks
    • Man from Lubbock
    Señor Marco
    • Mr. Garcia
    William Creamer
    • Old Cracker
    Loren Bivens
    • Strip Bar Exhorter
    Bob McAdams
    • Strip Bar Senator
    Shannon Sedwick
    • Stripper
    Nancy Finger
    • Girl on Overlook
    William Preston Robertson
    • Radio Evangelist
    • (voice)
    • (as Rev. William Preston Robertson)
    Holly Hunter
    Holly Hunter
    • Helene Trend
    • (voice)
    • (uncredited)
    Barry Sonnenfeld
    Barry Sonnenfeld
    • Marty's Vomiting
    • (voice)
    • (uncredited)
    • Directors
      • Joel Coen
      • Ethan Coen(uncredited)
    • Writers
      • Joel Coen
      • Ethan Coen
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • 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
      Loren discovers his lighter is missing when he goes to light a cigarette after burning the doctored photos. Logically, he would have used his lighter to light the pictures in the first place, so he would have discovered his lighter was missing when he tried to burn them. Also, as a heavy smoker, he likely would have tried to light a cigarette well before he would have gotten to burning the photos.
    • 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 reviews360

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    A Dark Little Gem
    The Coen Brothers first commercial film tells a noirish tale of murder, double-cross, and betrayal in small town America. A greasy small-town Texas saloon owner discovers his wife is having an affair with one of his bartenders. He hires the private detective that documented the affair to kill the couple. But the PI has different plans, and then everything starts going wrong, very wrong. The acting is great especially M. Emmett Walsh as the double-crossing PI. The direction and camera work presage the Coens subsequent work.

    This movie is a treat of a rental if you can find it. It's worth looking for.
    helpful•75
    38
    • gbheron
    • Sep 12, 1999

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 18, 1985 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Spanish
    • Also known as
      • Blood simple.
    • Filming locations
      • Pflugerville, Texas, USA
    • Production companies
      • River Road Productions
      • Foxton Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,500,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $3,851,855
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $42,971
      • Jul 9, 2000
    • Gross worldwide
      • $4,228,292
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 39 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Ultra Stereo(original version)
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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