+ bobthestoic Agreed - I have seen Blood Simple at a movie theater six times over the years. He turned in the performance of his career, what a great bit of casting that was.
@@jabarebird Two lines was all it took in the film to show what an immoral person Leon Visser was: Marty: Got a job for you. Visser: Well, if the pay's right and it's legal I'll do it. Marty: It's not strictly legal. Visser: If the pay's right I'll do it.
@@JP1234815 don’t forget “Visser: Gimme a call whenever you wanna cut off my head. I can always crawl around without it.” That line just tells you everything about him
I loved the character actors of the 70s-80s. Harry Dean Stanton, Dabney Coleman, Warren Oates, Charles Durning. Better than most of the movie stars of the same time.
Yes! Also Ned Beatty, Allen Garfield, John Cazale, Joe Spinell, Peter Boyle, Robert Duvall, Joe Don Baker, Bruce Dern, Frederic Forrest... and many more. The Golden Age of character actors.
He's incredible in this film, this character has such a life and plays so well against the cold reserve of all the other characters. The character at once incredibly evil but the way he plays him as a "nice guy" brings an incredible almost psychotic charisma to it... lovely
No, the character is transparently grimy and cynical, sneering like an imp all through the picture. His whole routine is that he excels at coming across as jolly and dull, when in truth he’s very crafty and devious, which is how he warps the situation to his advantage until the last five minutes of the picture.
He elevates any movie he's featured in with his presence and talent - the Coens were typically astute in casting M. Emmet Walsh in Blood Simple, an early sign of their genius. also voiced the Cosmic Owl on Adventure Time :)
Damn, I loved this man. Such a class act actor. His presence in a film just added so much. I just wish he'd had a lead in a movie. I can easily watch him for hours. And his real life persona is just as amazing and beautiful to watch and listen to as his characters. I do wish the boys would have put you in more of their movies along the way. You always brought the light. Thank you, M. Emmet Walsh.
I'm not sure what role he couldv'e played in some never shot scene, but I could so easily picture him filling some niche in Fargo, No Country for Old Men, Oh Brother, True Grit, etc.
Always a treat to see him in any film. If I were him I might have arranged to have my remains placed under a rock, just for the fun of using my burial to reference a memorable line from Blood Simple.
Love this guy! I was so pleasantly surprised to see him on season 3 of Sneaky Pete playing Margo Martindale's father. Still got it. He was the best thing about Blood Simple, which is a great movie.
Someone on IMDb who said he was his neighbor in Swanton once left a comment that said something like "he's old but he still gets around. I see him shoveling the snow on his walkway sometimes..." The comment was from 2014 or 2015, I think. I don't think IMDb has that comment feature anymore. Or it was moved behind a paywall.
Mr. Walsh has been one of 2 or 3 favorite actors for the past 30 odd years, and I've come to the conclusion that there's nothing that he can't do, and be excellent at the same time. If you're a fan of M. and haven't seen Clean and Sober, do yourself a favor and watch it. In my opinion he should've won a Best Supporting Actor for it.
It's the character actors who make a film great , not the so called stars. I always watch the characters in the background and enjoy how they stay in their roles.
This is a good movie. It talks about how killing makes you stupid and puts you on tilt because now you're a murderer... So does Lying, cheating and stealing.... In the case here most recently, it has made the liars, cheaters and thieves more stupid than they were already.... No wonder the governance then.
Absolutely brilliant, terrifying performance. Brilliant movie. Walsh, Hedaya, and McDormand all became well known, but whatever happened to the actor who played the bartender?
Great question. Samm-Art Williams stayed pretty busy mostly in theater, it looks like. And John Getz (Ray) didn't really hit the big time, but kept working in films. The other three were much more successful, but overall the cast is just perfect for Blood Simple. It'll always have a special place in my heart.
@@crimony3054 It grossed 2.5 million, so who knows about the net. What Emmet gained from it was part of the Coen legend, and his pocket of hundreds. There is a great relatively recent interview with the Coens about the movie, and to say it was done on a shoestring is generous- is astonishing that it was made at all- Frances M wore many of her own clothes for wardrobe.
@@ktkt1825I think I saw that interview, too, and it sounds like they were down to where they just should have given up on getting it shown, but they kept at it. I'm so glad they did. Imagine if Frances McDormand and the Coens had just quit movies without getting started!
@@unclvinny Indeed! If you get a chance, watch 'The Story of Pixar'- how 5 Cal Arts students' passion formed a shoestring company pushing the cutting edge of CG only because Steve Jobs saw their potential-- amazing 'almost did not happen'.
This guy’s even more of a character than his characters. I think his technique mostly consists of trying to subdue his real personality, otherwise you’d never buy the performance.
I like it because it feels like the rest of the world is going by ignoring what's going on with the main characters. They're caught up in their weird problems, and outside it's a totally different scene.
joel 1114 I thought his performance was just corny. His character was way over the top and not believable or threatening in any way. I think his talents were much better suited to the character he played in The Jerk
You might want to re-watch Blood Simple, I think you might have overlooked one of the great performances, especially for a low budget movie. What I consider over the top would be almost anything Al Pacino or Nic Cage is in.
Agreed. His performance wasn’t enough to ruin the film or the character but it was definitely noticeably mediocre compared to how much he praised his abilities in this interview lol
@@hansmoffett9758I agree with you, but I also think it counts as 'over the top'. His performance perfectly matched the script, and what the Coens wanted, but their universe is usually a bit -- or a lot! -- crazy and out of the norm. His character and performance aren't "believable" as such, but they match the eerie mood they were going for. One of my all-time favorites. So glad I stumbled on this interview.
He was supposed to be threatening in a deceptive way, not some big lug action movie obvious type. The character was a sleazy good ole boy genial Texan who has seen a lot in life and knows how to deal with and manipulate people. And he's willing to do anything. Everything was perfect.
![Joel & Ethan Coen- Interview (Blood Simple) 1984 [Reelin' In The Years Archives]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/hpXW2o9qGPM/mqdefault.jpg)
I already miss you, Mr. Walsh.
He will be missed. Blood simple made me see cinema differently ever since!!!
RIP M. Emmet Walsh.
Saw "Blood Simple" the day it came out in a cool dark theater in Athens, GA. Fantastic.
@@user-sd1sf2jd6i 4
I envy you.
When I tell you I watched Blood Simple literally a week ago for the first time, which was also his first performance that I've seen, that is just sad.
What part of that is sad, exactly
@@Bonzulac it's sad that he passed away days after I watched his great performance
Great actor, very underrated.
That Voice! Incredible !
Nonsense. Highly-rated.
M Emmet Walsh is no way underrated
RIP Bro
The character he played in Blood Simple gave me chills the first time I saw it.
+ bobthestoic
Agreed - I have seen Blood Simple at a movie theater six times over the years. He turned in the performance of his career, what a great bit of casting that was.
@@jabarebird Two lines was all it took in the film to show what an immoral person Leon Visser was: Marty: Got a job for you.
Visser: Well, if the pay's right and it's legal I'll do it.
Marty: It's not strictly legal.
Visser: If the pay's right I'll do it.
@@JP1234815 don’t forget “Visser: Gimme a call whenever you wanna cut off my head. I can always crawl around without it.” That line just tells you everything about him
M. Emmet Walsh is one of the greatest actors of all time: “Give me a call whenever you wanna cut off my head. I can always crawl around without it.”
Greatest line and it’s hard to believe he is really dead…I would make sure…
@@josephdans7120 M. Emmet Walsh is probably crawling around without his head on, or even, without his body on....
One of the best to ever do it.
Total genius-R.I.P.M.Emmet.
I loved the character actors of the 70s-80s. Harry Dean Stanton, Dabney Coleman, Warren Oates, Charles Durning. Better than most of the movie stars of the same time.
Yep. As overrated as the "stars" were, the character actors were incredibly underrated.
Yes! Also Ned Beatty, Allen Garfield, John Cazale, Joe Spinell, Peter Boyle, Robert Duvall, Joe Don Baker, Bruce Dern, Frederic Forrest... and many more. The Golden Age of character actors.
He captured the spirit of the thing.
Rest in peace legend. Best laugh in film
He's incredible in this film, this character has such a life and plays so well against the cold reserve of all the other characters. The character at once incredibly evil but the way he plays him as a "nice guy" brings an incredible almost psychotic charisma to it... lovely
I didn't see him as evil.............just comically detached.
@@martitinkovich4489 The real question. What happened to his penis at the end when she shot him?
He's the stand out performance. The rest are good, but the stars are Walsh, the directing and Barry Sonnenfeld's cinematography.
No, the character is transparently grimy and cynical, sneering like an imp all through the picture. His whole routine is that he excels at coming across as jolly and dull, when in truth he’s very crafty and devious, which is how he warps the situation to his advantage until the last five minutes of the picture.
What a rare treat of a interview. One of the great character actors of the last 40 + years
He was brilliant in Blood Simple…amazing that he was not always in the overall loop…a tribute to the brilliance of the Cohens…
One of the best! RIP
M. Emmett Walsh is one of my all time favorite character actors! I absolutely love him.
He elevates any movie he's featured in with his presence and talent - the Coens were typically astute in casting M. Emmet Walsh in Blood Simple, an early sign of their genius.
also voiced the Cosmic Owl on Adventure Time :)
They wrote the part for him.
A great down to earth talent and a real Vermonter.
Genius! He was awesome in "Straight Time".
Yes a great film.
Yep, he nailed the "asshole parole officer" part in that.
Damn, I loved this man. Such a class act actor. His presence in a film just added so much. I just wish he'd had a lead in a movie. I can easily watch him for hours. And his real life persona is just as amazing and beautiful to watch and listen to as his characters. I do wish the boys would have put you in more of their movies along the way. You always brought the light.
Thank you, M. Emmet Walsh.
I'm not sure what role he couldv'e played in some never shot scene, but I could so easily picture him filling some niche in Fargo, No Country for Old Men, Oh Brother, True Grit, etc.
I LOVE that he’s still around and still in great movies like Knives Out.
Absolutely! He was on the screen just a few minutes, if so, and just stole the show, I was laughing like crazy :D
d'oh! Now there's another reason to watch Knives Out again. I loved that movie, but don't remember his role.
Only problem is he was only in 2 Coen Brothers movies.
Should have been in all of them.
I know right
yeah man... he's honestly the incarnation of their mission statement. the cold blooded spirit of texas americana, greasy gun-slingin' sociopath
I agree-
Always a treat to see him in any film. If I were him I might have arranged to have my remains placed under a rock, just for the fun of using my burial to reference a memorable line from Blood Simple.
Love this guy! I was so pleasantly surprised to see him on season 3 of Sneaky Pete playing Margo Martindale's father. Still got it. He was the best thing about Blood Simple, which is a great movie.
Down here you're on your on
No matter the movie he’s always a treasure
Very nice guy too, very cheerful.
Someone on IMDb who said he was his neighbor in Swanton once left a comment that said something like "he's old but he still gets around. I see him shoveling the snow on his walkway sometimes..." The comment was from 2014 or 2015, I think. I don't think IMDb has that comment feature anymore. Or it was moved behind a paywall.
He’s got an amazing filmography
This is a great interview. Thanks for posting. It's great to get some insight into this fantastic movie - the one that started it all.
Mr. Walsh has been one of 2 or 3 favorite actors for the past 30 odd years, and I've come to the conclusion that there's nothing that he can't do, and be excellent at the same time. If you're a fan of M. and haven't seen Clean and Sober, do yourself a favor and watch it. In my opinion he should've won a Best Supporting Actor for it.
And Michael Keaton should have won Best Actor for that film. He reminded me of Jack Nicholson at his best.
gonna watch it now. 2:30 am
I'm so glad I found your channel. Blood Simple is one of my all-time favorite movies. xo
Thanks, Mike. I sure enjoyed your acting.
It's the character actors who make a film great , not the so called stars. I always watch the characters in the background and enjoy how they stay in their roles.
I enjoyed his role in Calvary fairly recently too
@8:12 Haha! xD A typical M. Emmet Walsh moment :D
Love this. Thanks for posting!
demanding cash payment for acting seems like the thing his character would do
you hire a cast of characters, you get a cast of characters
He is so fantastic.
LOVE.
THIS.
GUY!
Geat movie - and this interview really adds to my appreciation of the movie
RIP, Mr. Walsh.
Respect
I love this movie !
One of my all-time favorite performances!
This is a good movie. It talks about how killing makes you stupid and puts you on tilt because now you're a murderer... So does Lying, cheating and stealing.... In the case here most recently, it has made the liars, cheaters and thieves more stupid than they were already.... No wonder the governance then.
Lots of informative subtext to what Walsh says.
We knew who you were, Mr. Walsh.
Should've received an Oscar nomination-
"No, not that motherscratcher! Bill PARKER!"
"He's not carnival personel!!"
Lmao he’s so adorable
Lee Marvin says a bad guy doesn't think he is a bad guy.
The best character actor ever.
RIP.
Amazing character actor you are
In ordinary people he played a great part...the coach. No nonsense guy
Intelligent INNNsight!
Hell of a neck
*heck
❤
Absolutely brilliant, terrifying performance. Brilliant movie. Walsh, Hedaya, and McDormand all became well known, but whatever happened to the actor who played the bartender?
Great question. Samm-Art Williams stayed pretty busy mostly in theater, it looks like. And John Getz (Ray) didn't really hit the big time, but kept working in films. The other three were much more successful, but overall the cast is just perfect for Blood Simple. It'll always have a special place in my heart.
That movie was chilling and Emmet Walsh had one of the most memorable scenes in the film.
and 1% of the net
@@crimony3054 It grossed 2.5 million, so who knows about the net. What Emmet gained from it was part of the Coen legend, and his pocket of hundreds. There is a great relatively recent interview with the Coens about the movie, and to say it was done on a shoestring is generous- is astonishing that it was made at all- Frances M wore many of her own clothes for wardrobe.
@@ktkt1825I think I saw that interview, too, and it sounds like they were down to where they just should have given up on getting it shown, but they kept at it. I'm so glad they did. Imagine if Frances McDormand and the Coens had just quit movies without getting started!
@@unclvinny Indeed! If you get a chance, watch 'The Story of Pixar'- how 5 Cal Arts students' passion formed a shoestring company pushing the cutting edge of CG only because Steve Jobs saw their potential-- amazing 'almost did not happen'.
This guy’s even more of a character than his characters. I think his technique mostly consists of trying to subdue his real personality, otherwise you’d never buy the performance.
better than brando
well now let's not go crazy
"Straight Time" is a very underrated movie and M. stole it right from under Dustin Hoffman. I never forgot him after that.
I always saw his character as sort of a strange prototype for Anton chigurh in no country for old men
I thought his work in Amadeus was better.
Younger Walsh looks a but like Ricky Gervais.
The reggae music is so out of place in that movie. 😄
Deliberately misleading
@@cablejimmy also the black bartender...first time I saw the film I was sure his role in the plot was going to be significant.
I like it because it feels like the rest of the world is going by ignoring what's going on with the main characters. They're caught up in their weird problems, and outside it's a totally different scene.
Geraldine Page won for Tripe not Dewhurst
K Doherty he’s 81. Let’s give him a pass.
joel 1114
I thought his performance was just corny. His character was way over the top and not believable or threatening in any way. I think his talents were much better suited to the character he played in The Jerk
You might want to re-watch Blood Simple, I think you might have overlooked one of the great performances, especially for a low budget movie. What I consider over the top would be almost anything Al Pacino or Nic Cage is in.
@King Dark Waaaaay over the top.
Agreed. His performance wasn’t enough to ruin the film or the character but it was definitely noticeably mediocre compared to how much he praised his abilities in this interview lol
@@hansmoffett9758I agree with you, but I also think it counts as 'over the top'. His performance perfectly matched the script, and what the Coens wanted, but their universe is usually a bit -- or a lot! -- crazy and out of the norm. His character and performance aren't "believable" as such, but they match the eerie mood they were going for. One of my all-time favorites. So glad I stumbled on this interview.
He was supposed to be threatening in a deceptive way, not some big lug action movie obvious type. The character was a sleazy good ole boy genial Texan who has seen a lot in life and knows how to deal with and manipulate people. And he's willing to do anything. Everything was perfect.