In Cold Blood: "I'd like to apologize, but who to?"

Being that I am an uncreative reviewer, I shall begin by placing the movie into it's proper historical context and then continue from there.

In 1959, Mr. Herb Cuttler, a respected god-fearing Kansas farm hand, and his wife and two children were brutally murdered in a crime that shocked the nation. The men whom committed the crime- Perry Smith (Robert Blake) and Dick Hickock (Scott Wilson)- had come to the home hearing rumors of a safe containing $10,000, but came out with only $40, a radio, binoculars and a silver dollar. Although the men left few clues- except for a piece of string and a footprint- they were apprehended through skilled detective work, quirks of fate and luck.

During this time, a reporter, Truman Capote (Played in the movie by Paul Stewart), followed the story intensely, and continued doing so right through the trial. He also kept in touch with the convicted criminals as they would sit on death row for five years awaiting their fates. According to the IMDB, Capote grew a bond with both men, especially Perry (Whom would give most of his possessions to Capote), and Capote was present at the executions. He watched as Dick Hickock was hung, but couldn’t stand the thought of watching Smith die, whom he had just talked to at length for. Capote would later corral his interviews, writings and thoughts into a best selling book, In Cold Blood, which became an instant, acclaimed best seller. In 1967, director Richard Brooks- taking advantage of the decay of the Hollywood censors- brought the book to the big screen.

Blake and Wilson were probably never better in very difficult roles. Perry is a dreamer and the meek one of the pair, but also with the worst depression- caused by a disrupted, traumatic child hood- and an aspirin junkie. Dick is smooth, suave and charming- which he uses for swindling and winning over the ladies- in addition to being the most direct, action-prone and probably most destructive of the two, and certainly the most cold hearted (When listening to a news report on the murders, Dick asks Perry- who’s lying in bed angered and sickened- “You gonna eat that cheeseburger?”). Some say that the movie glorifies these criminals. For me, it doesn’t: They are the lead parts, and the actors cast in them are able to succeed at both disgusting and repealing audiences, but also allowing them to at least feel for one of them. That by no means justifies or lessens the crimes they did, but neither are we rooting for them when they commit their crimes or when they are hung. The flashing of the title In Cold Blood has a certain symbolism to it (For me, it shows that they died in the same cold way that their victims died in).

Richard Brooks and the rest of the production crew of In Cold Blood strived greatly for accuracy in the movie, as shown in the theatrical trailer. Blake and Wilson both bare extremely great resemblance to the real life Perry Smith and Dick Hickock. Actual locations were used, including the Kansas City courtroom (Five of jurors shown in the movie handed down the real life verdict) and the penitentiary’s gallows. Heck, even the Clutter home was used, which must have certainly been very eerie for all involved in the production.

In Cold Blood seems to have been largely influenced by foreign movies, especially by ones from the French New Wave. I put on the English subtitles so I could better pick up dialogue bits, and, just for fun, I decided to turn on the French audio for a bit. If I hadn’t known what I was watching, I could have very easily thought that this was a film of Truffaut or Goddard like those I watched in my cinema classes. In Cold Blood obviously looks a lot like pictures from the French New Wave, but it also deals with similar themes such as desperate people in desperate situations or using people that are or could at least look ordinary, rather than being Hollywood stars. Even individual scenes, such as when Perry and Dick try to steal a car from an unsuspecting driver, feel French in terms of the situations, the thoughts and actions of the characters.

The movie, though certainly not a pleasant ride throughout, becomes especially unsettling during the last half hour. It starts off with Perry discussing his version of what happened during the night, which has the family shown being bonded up while Dick looks foolhardly for a safe that doesn’t exist, and Perry shows a little emotions for the family (He talks to the daughter about horses, and pulls away the elder Clutter from a vent because he gets cold). Perry ends his testimony saying “I thought Mr. Clutter was a very nice gentleman... I thought so right up to the time I cut his throat.” Five years pass while the men are in prison before they finally get their executions. While Dick is living his last moments, Perry talks with the reporter about his life, his fondest memories and, of course, his greatest pains. The raindrops on the window reflect back on Perry’s face and look like tears. It was not a planned effect from the cinematographer: The late, legendary Conrad Hall. According to the IMDB, that effect was an accident: A fan on the set blew the simulated rain onto the window. Nonetheless, it’s a happy accident, as it becomes one of the most memorable cinematography touches ever.

The movie makes various references to the Humphrey Bogart classic The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (Which Robert Blake had a cameo in as the boy that sold Bogey the winning lottery ticket). Perry talks about the movie right before the men commit the murders, and it is both referenced verbally and symbolically in the scene where they pick up the hitchhiking boy and man (Collecting all of the bottles thrown alongside the desert road- like Bogart and Tim Hutton searching the desert for gold dust- while Perry calls it their “Treasure of the Sierra Madre”). Of course, there is also Perry dreaming about finding the sunken gold of Cortes. Both Perry and Dick want to strike it rich in the world anyway they can- just like the prospectors in Sierra Madre did- but the end turns out the same in both cases. The only difference is, not only were Perry and Dick worse than being thieves, but they probably wouldn’t have minded having gold dust to throw into the wind.

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The DVD print looks gorgeous, and is in widescreen, of course. Extras are scarce with only the trailer for this and a couple of other related movies. Pity, because a movie like this could have benefited from a DVD package setting up the historical content and the time frame of events. Thank goodness for IMDB.com!