De sang-froid

I happened to be sitting in a lovely hotel room at a wonderful resort in the Ozarks, ready to go out on the boat after golfing 18 holes in fine weather, when I made the mistake of turning on the TV. One of the cable channels was screening "In Cold Blood." I watched the opening sequence. Despite the beautiful weather, and the girlfriend nagging at me to get up off the couch and go outside, I knew I wouldn't leave the room until the movie was over. I can't add much to the fine reviews by others, particularly the review by the gentleman from London, except to add that the dialogue in the movie is marvelous. The writer and director caught the laconic, spare speech of the Midwest. The questions and answers between the characters are perfect. (Paul Stewart, the reporter: "Don't the people in this town lock their doors?" John Forsythe, the detective: "They will tonight.") And the way Perry and Dick look at each other menacingly in critical situations gives one the chills. (Dick: "Don't worry baby; we left no living witnesses." Perry, staring at Dick: "I know one.") Of all the great performances in the film, my favorite is John Forsythe as the KBI detective who grows weary from contemplating the evil minds behind the murders of his Kansas neighbors, the Clutters. A close second among the great performances is Scott Wilson, who makes Dick a charming loser going nowhere in life, unable and unwilling to civilize himself to live in society.

Certainly this is one of the ten best movies ever made, and the best of all the "True Crime" movies. (The made-for-TV remake was a horrible, lame joke.) I just hope when it comes on again it's a miserable day outside so I don't miss out on the boating! Ed in St. Louis

Truman Capote allegedly read a brief article in the New York Times describing the killing of the Clutter family in Kansas and shortly afterward visited the scene of the crime with author Harper Lee (who eventually lived off considerable royalties from "To Kill a Mockingbird".) I remember reading "In Cold Blood" in my teen years when I was considering working for the FBI as a field agent. Then and now I have always been fascinated by crimes that allegedly defy explanation: "senseless killings". But what enraptured me was Capote's considerable gifts as a writer and story teller. His work as both a short story writer and novelist has consistently been underrated and under appreciated. Two years after the publication of Capote's book, Richard Brooks (who had adapted and directed the film version of Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" and had also collaborated with John Huston on the screenplay of "Key Largo") brought Capote's "In Cold Blood" to stark life in the movie theaters. While I am always somewhat hesitant to see my favorite novels and plays transferred to film (since they invariably lack the power and verve of the original), I had always wanted to see "In Cold Blood", but it is a film rarely shown on television. It is a powerful film, rightly shot in black and white and often evoking the "film noir" feel of the 40's and 50's. Robert Blake steals the film, as he should in this role, as the moody and tortured Perry. We see his life unfold both linearly and through a series of flashbacks, developing an understanding of how a sociopath's life might be formed. He is accompanied on this haphazard and fruitless journey by Dick, played brilliantly by Scott Wilson (who had just previous to this film played the murder suspect in "In the Heat of the Night" with Poitier and Steiger). But, of course, as with any great film, this movie is replete with supporting actors who are consistently strong throughout the picture. Charles McGraw, who plays Perry's father, almost steals the picture with his seven-minute scene as he lapses into a reverie of Perry's drunken sex-crazed mother and his love and supposed devotion to his young son. Another notable from the supporting cast is Gerald O'Loughlin as one of the detectives in hot pursuit of the suspects. One of the true highlights of the picture is the underlying musical score composed by the brilliant Quincy Jones, who had already scored several films prior to this one, but it was certainly 1967 which put Jones on Hollywood's musical map for back-to-back tour de force scoring of "In the Heat of the Night" and "In Cold Blood". Some may find that the voice-over narration toward the conclusion of the film verges on the heavy-handed in the implication of the fruitlessness of capital punishment, but Gallup polls of the mid-sixties reveal that 82% of Americans were not in favor of the death penalty, so, for the Zeitgeist of the era, the commentary fits well. For anyone who appreciates film noir, first-rate cinematography, quality musical scoring, and superb acting, "In Cold Blood" is a must-see film.

Remarkable, disturbing film about the true-life, senseless, brutal murder of a small-town family, along with the aftermath, and examination of the lives of the killers, Dick Hickok and Perry Smith.

No matter how much time goes by, or how dated this film may look, it still resonates the utter incomprehensibility of criminal acts such as this.

This really traces multiple tragedies: The tragedy, brutality and senselessness of the murder of the Clutter family, a decent farm family in small-town Holcomb, Kansas; and the wasted, brutal and sad lives of Hickok and Smith.

An interesting point is made in the film: that neither of these two immature, scared, petty criminals would have ever contemplated going through with something like this alone. But, together, they created a dangerous, murderous collective personality; one that fed the needs and pathology of each of them. They push each other along a road of "proving" something to each other. That they were man enough to do it, to carry it out; neither wants to be seen as too cowardly to complete their big "score"; an unfortunate and dangerous residue of the desolate lives they led. These were two grown-up children, who live in a criminal's world of not backing down from dares; who constantly need to prove manhood and toughness. in this instance, these needs carried right through to the murder of the Clutters.

The film contains a somewhat sentimentalized look at the Clutter family, but the point is made. These were respected, law-abiding, small-town people, who didn't deserve this terrifying fate. The movie also gives us a sense of the young lives of Hickok and Smith. Perry Smith, whose early life was filled with security and love, but watched in horror as alcohol took his family down a tragic path. Hickok, poor and left pretty much to his own devices, not able to see how he fit in, using his intelligence and charm to con everyone he came into contact with.

An interesting, and maybe the first, look at capital punishment, and what ends we hope to achieve. Is this nothing more than revenge killing for a murder that rocked a nation at a time when we had not yet had to fully face that there might be such predators among us, or does putting these guys at the end of a rope truly provide a deterent to the childish and brutal posturing of men like these? Is it possible to deter men who live lives of deceit, operating under the radar, believing they fool everyone they come into contact with? To be deterred, you must believe it's possible you will be caught. Is it possible to deter these men who believe they are too clever to be caught?; who have committed hundreds of petty crimes, and got away with them? This was supposed to be a "cinch", "no witnesses".

When caught, Hickok finds he can't charm and con the agents the way he had department store clerks. Smith, who believes he deserves such a fate anyway, who seemed to be the only one who truly grasped the gravity of what they had done, willingly tells the story when he learns that Hickok has cowardly caved in. Hickok blinked first. A silly game of chicken between two immature, emotionally damaged, dangerous men.

Fascinating psychological thriller, telling a story of a horrendous crime in this nation's history. Stunning portrayals by Robert Blake and Scott Wilson. These roles made their careers.

In the year 2006, "In Cold Blood"-a riveting thriller from 1967-has two new interesting contexts that it did not previous have. First, and most chillingly, is the fact that it's star, Robert Blake, was recently on trial for murdering his wife. Second, the recent Oscar winning biopic, "Capote" showed the muddled back story of this haunting true crime tale's author, Truman Capote. These two new twists make the film timely for a modern audience.

As a stand alone film from it's era, "In Cold Blood" is top notch in every way. Most notable is the stunning black and white cinematography from Conrad Hall (later of "American Beauty" and "Road to Perdition" fame). Many of the stills from this film of the Kansas farm house at night or the tree-lined back country roads could be sold as fine art photography. Combined with the cracker-jack direction from Brooks and superb editing in the early scenes (where we see the mundane daily life of the innocent family about to be senselessly slaughtered beautifully intertwined with the plotting of the two hapless killers), a rich brooding atmosphere is created that sets the stage for riveting suspense (even when everyone knows how this is all going to end due to the fact its all based on real life events). It's also great to see in this day and age how brilliantly staged a harrowing murder scene can be depicted where the graphic nature of the act is transmitted to the viewer subliminally with nary a drop of blood shown on screen.

The film is also anchored nicely by Robert Blake's eerie performance as the more sympathetic yet senselessly brutal side of the killing duo. The flashback scenes to his horrible childhood are extremely well done. Then there is the scene towards the end of the film where he is speaking to the reverend before being sent to the gallows and he makes his last "confession" so to speak. It's one of those classic movie moments that is a perfect marriage of gritty acting, superb writing, flawless direction, and haunting photography. I dare you to erase from your mind the stark image of the rain's reflection from the window flowing down Robert Blake's pallid face in lieu of actual tears.

The only thing hampering "In Cold Blood" is the slow moving middle act where the killers are on the lam and the forced nature of the social commentary at the end. The tacked-on political message about the death penalty is secondary to its compelling depiction of the mad killers and their prey.

The Coen brothers made a couple of films about crimes starting small and getting out of hand very quickly. Perhaps the best example is "Fargo" (1996).

"In cold blood" is different. From the very beginning two men are planning a cruel robbery and they intend to let no witnesses behind.

That the loot of all the violence amounts to a meager 43 dollars certainly gives a cynical touch to the story but the full amount of senselessness is expressed in the way the story is told. Using a technique from the horror genre which boils down to the principle that suggesting is often more effective than showing (see for example "Cat people", 1942, Jacques Tourneur), very little of the actual robbery is shown. Instead in the first half of the movie we see the criminals travelling to the place of the crime, doing perfectly normal things as drinking coffee in a diner but also bying a rope to tie down their victims. These scenes are alternated with images of the Clutter family (the victims) perfectly unaware of the danger that is (literally) approaching.

The black and white cinematography of Conrad Hall is breathtaking and the jazzy score of Quincy Jones is catching. And then the criminals have arrived at the Clutters home.

The headlights of the car go out.

The music stops.

And all we hear is the wind howling round the farm.

The second part of the film seems to be a plea against capital punishment. To be honest the first part of the film had made such an overwhelming impression on me that I was unabe to feel any compassion with the perpetrators. This is not to say that the second part of the movie does not have strong moments. Brilliant (and very well known) is the scene in which one of the perpetrators (Perry played by Robert Blake) is telling the story of his life. It looks as though he is crying, but in reality there are raindrops flowing on the window.

"In cold blood" is based on the non fiction novel of the same name by Truman Capote. The film manages to maintain some sort of documentary look and feel. This is done by filming on the location of the real Clutters farm but above all by not casting prominent stars in the lead roles.