In Cold Blood (1967)

Sadly Over-hyped

If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

Whenever this comes on, I find myself watching it. A fascinating, riveting account of the grisly murders of a farm family for money that never existed.The book was by Truman Capote. The writer/director here is Richard Brooks. He is masterful in his crafting of this story.The highlight is Conrad Hall's superlative cinematography! This is the all-time greatest widescreen black and white work ever.Robert Blake's performance has always been considered masterful. It's so tragic how he himself has fallen so hard.Recommended to anyone who loves true crime dramas, or classic cinema.********** (10 Out of 10 Stars)

After a botched robbery results in the brutal murder of a rural family, two drifters elude police, in the end coming to terms with their own mortality and the repercussions of their vile atrocity.Let us single out Scott Wilson. This great actor seems to have gone most of his life without recognition, being best known now for "The Walking Dead" rather than anything else he has done. Robert Blake got huge, but despite this movie and appearing on the cover of Life magazine, Wilson seems to have stayed obscure. That is a travesty.I love that the film is in black and white. By the late 1960s, this was (I believe) less common than it had been only a few years before. But it makes it edgier, and also timeless. Color has a year attached, as color technology changes. But black and white can be any time, while still maintaining a very 1950s feel.

The acting and direction in the movie adaption of In Cold Blood played an important and effective role in the characterization of Dick and Perry. In order for this film to work, Scott Wilson needed to play Dick as a cunning and charming personality. The suit store scene perfectly displays these tendencies. In this scene, Dick demonstrates his cunningness by giving the salesman a believable and ordinary story for why he needs a suit. He then uses his charm when he tells the salesman he is the best man and this is his wedding present to Perry. Now, the salesman has an emotional interest in helping Dick instead of merely wanting to make money. After picking out the suits and Dick's continued charm and wit, the salesman believes he has a bond with Dick when he treats him as friend by trusting him with the check. The top notch acting from Scott Wilson, convinced the viewer of Dick's personality and abilities which aided the movies attempt to display an authentic crime. The emphasis in each scene, provided by the director, successfully made the audience sympathize with Perry. The constant pain Perry showed from his accident that created his aspirin addiction demonstrated his vulnerability. Perry's flashbacks throughout the movie, initiated by a mini deja-vu, informed the viewer of Perry's troubled past. For example, when Perry is near his death, he recalls his father aiming a gun at him while telling him to "take a good look" because this is the last thing he will ever see. This scene came before his hanging when he was concerned about his last moments in the world and how they would feel. The flashback allowed the audience to almost pardon Perry's action as a result of a troubled childhood. All of these vulnerabilities culminate during Perry's account of the murder when he reluctantly goes into the Clutters house followed by his attempts to persuade Dick to leave the house. This direction, along with the acting, allowed an accurate, gripping, and entertaining film adaption.

Probably one of the best aspects of this film was the beautiful use of light and shadows to help portray a solemn/desolate mood, especially towards the end when Dick and Perry are waiting on death row. There is one scene where Perry tells the reverend about how his father once attempted to shoot him and Perry is shown standing beside the barred window of his jail cell while it rains outside. Water is rolling down the glass of the window with a ray of light behind it, causing a bunch of watery shadows to be cast onto Perry's face. This makes him seem as if fat tears are rolling down his face. This is a very powerful image since this seems to be the breaking point for Perry, where he is finally realizing how sorry he is for all of the mistakes he's witnessed and made in his life. The clever, shadowy cinematography along with the ominous/creepy soundtrack contribute to a very eerie tone throughout the movie, accurately portraying the gruesome murder of the Clutter family along with Dick and Perry's experiences before and after committing the crime.