7.8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.8 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
When Marty, the owner of a Texas backwoods bar, hires a man to kill his cheating wife and her boyfriend, he opens a door into the criminal world that he'll never be able to shut. The sleazy hit man decides instead to shoot Marty, thereby collecting his unearned fee and eliminating the only person who could implicate him — or so he thinks.
Starring: Dan Hedaya, Frances McDormand, John Getz (I), M. Emmet Walsh, Samm-Art WilliamsDrama | 100% |
Crime | 33% |
Film-Noir | 30% |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 5.0 | |
Audio | 5.0 | |
Extras | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Joel and Ethan Coen's "Blood Simple" (1984) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include a collection of original trailers; new video interviews with actors Frances McDormand and M. Emmet Walsh; new filmed conversation with Joel and Ethan Coen and cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld; new filmed interviews with composer Carter Burwell and sound editor Skip Lievsay; and more. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring Nathaniel Rich's essay "Down Here, You're on Your Own" and technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
"The world is full of complainers. But the fact is, nothing comes with a guarantee. Something can always go wrong."
presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Blood Simple arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.
The following text appears inside the leaflet provided with this Blu-ray release:
"This new digital transfer was created in 4K 16-bit on a Scanity film scanner from the 35mm original camera negative. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, and warps were manually removed using MTI Film's DRS, while Image Systems' Phoenix was used for jitter, flicker, small dirt, grain, and noise reduction. The 5.1 track was supervised by sound editor Skip Lievsay. Additional restoration was performed by the Criterion Collection using Pro Tools HD and iZotope RX.
Transfer supervisors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, David Diliberto, Lee Kline, Barry Sonnenfeld.
Colorist: Sheri Eisenberg/Deluxe, Culver City."
The new transfer is fantastic. The visuals are strikingly lush and boast a spectacular range of nuances and highlights that create a very special ambient atmosphere. Light and shadows are captured in a variety of different ways, but depth is consistently very pleasing. Perhaps the most impressive improvements are in the area of color reproduction. The primaries are very solid and incredibly well saturated, while the nuances are dramatically expanded. (This leads me to believe that a native 4K Blu-ray release of this film will probably look quite extraordinary). Definition, both during the daylight footage and the darker/indoor footage, is fantastic. There are no traces of problematic digital tinkering. Also, there are no stability issues to report. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).
There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.
If you have seen this film then you already know that the sound design is quite remarkable. There are all sorts of surprising sounds and noises that raise the intensity level very well. The lossless track handles them as well as it possibly can. Clarity, sharpness, and depth are terrific, while balance is still very carefully managed. There are no audio dropouts, pops, cracks, or digital distortions to report.
Joel and Ethan Coen's directorial debut, Blood Simple, is a very stylish piece of Americana that in certain ways remains their best work. (The two directors argue otherwise in one of the new featurettes that are included on this release, but I very much disagree). I find it incredibly entertaining and I think that Barry Sonnenfeld's lensing gives the film a very special noirish atmosphere. Criterion's upcoming Blu-ray release is sourced from a top-notch new 4K master which offers a wide range of great improvements. As usual, the label has also included a great selection of new and informative supplemental features. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
1984
1984
DVD Packaging | Director's Cut
1984
Director's Cut
1984
1990
1944
Collector's Edition
1996
4K Restoration
1973
1946
Warner Archive Collection
1944
1997
2014
1995
2013
2016
1955
Limited Edition to 3000
1950
2006
1959
1944
2011
Warner Archive Collection
1947
1998
2002