Part of 2024 In Tribute
At once a loving homage to the noir films of the ‘40s and ‘50s and a reworking of the genre, the Coen brothers’ darkly comic debut charts the anatomy of jealousy, revenge and greed. Marty (Dan Hedaya) suspects his wife (Frances McDormand) of infidelity and hires a private eye (M. Emmet Walsh) to obtain photographic proof. When his worst fears are confirmed, Marty sets a plan in motion to have the lovers murdered. The tangled web of deceit coupled with a series of misunderstandings that follows illustrate that vengeance doesn’t not pay — and often destroys the lives of all involved. M. Emmet Walsh’s darkly comic depiction of the languidly sinister private dick goes down in the history books as one of the great big bad genre performances of all time.
“Walsh in particular is delectably sleazy, speaking his lines in a sneering Texas drawl that makes every word sound as if it’s turned rancid.” —Mike D’Angelo, The A.V. Club “As black, sinful and nasty as a weekful of Hitchcocks, this is as fresh and intoxicating now as it was back then. In a word: deadly.” —Ian Nathan, Empire Magazine “Aside from the subtle performances, usually lacking in a film of this size (around $1.5 million), the observant viewer will find a cornucopia of detail.” —Variety “The film not only stands as a brilliant thriller, but one of the strongest feature film debuts by any creative team.” —Bob Grimm, Sacramento News & Review
