I think one could make the case that Marge is a later incarnation of Abby's character in the Coen's later film, Fargo, their first return to noir after Blood Simple over a decade earlier. Like Abby, Marge makes her way through the film while the violence and corruption surround her without affecting her. Marge is more aware of what's going on around her, yet like Abby she can't quite fathom it.
In Fargo we return to Jerry Lundegard roaring like a beast as the state police arrest him in his motel room--but end with a short coda of Marge and Norm contemplating their lives and their futures together, a decidedly un-noir-like ending.
Notice at the end of Blood Simple we return to the corrupt view we began the film with--Visser--watching the condensation sliding down the pipes under the sink.
I enjoyed Blood Simple. But I didn't understand why it ended with the last shot of the pipes.
ReplyDeleteI did enjoyed Blood Simple, but there was a lot of twist like how Abby's new found boyfriend thought that Abby eliminate his husband, and helped her clean the crime site.
ReplyDeleteThe water pipes reminded me of two very noir characteristics. The first is water itself which is constant in classic noir films. The other was sight and eyes. The water pipes looked to me like two eyeballs. Anyone else see that?
ReplyDeleteI loved the ending to Blood Simple, I thought it was a nice touch of black humor from the Coen Brothers. Poor Visser had to lay on the floor dying while drops of water drip onto his face one at a time, presumably the last thing he sees before his death is a leaky pipe.
ReplyDeleteI had a similar thought about the Abby/Marge correlation. To me the correlation greatest at the end of each movie where both characters end witha gun in their hand, firing the final shot into the most villainous character. Where I think there's a big difference (and I think this is what you're alluding to) is that Marge's ending is decidedly more upbeat--Marge doesn't kill anyone: she stops a killer and arrests him.
ReplyDeletePerhaps, because she does not kill, it allows her some reprieve and that brief coda with Norm at the end of the movie. Of course, this is in direct opposition to Abby who does kill someone, and as a result, the Blood Simple ends on a much bleaker note.
Of course, it could also be entirely coincidental, but if there is a correlation, I think the body count for Abby and Marge symbolically affects the endings of each film.