In Cold Blood

"The crime that shocked a nation."

1967 2h 14m EN

🙌

7.5

BANGER

🍅

75%

FRESH

💯

METACRITIC

⭐

7.9

IMDB

★7.5TMDB · 458🍅75%Rotten Tomatoes●89Metacritic★7.9IMDB · 32,154

CrimeDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

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.

“The crime that shocked a nation.”

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Cast

Robert Blake
Perry Smith
Scott Wilson
Richard 'Dick' Hickcock
John Forsythe
Alvin Dewey
Paul Stewart
Jensen
Gerald S. O'Loughlin
Harold Nye
Jeff Corey
Mr. Hickock
John Gallaudet
Roy Church
James Flavin
Clarence Duntz

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Richard Brooks
Writers: Richard Brooks
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $3.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 3.7× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

59 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Richard Brooks, shot by Conrad Hall. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Quincy Jones. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Peter Zinner shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Robert Blake and Scott Wilson and John Forsythe carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The crime that shocked a nation.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Richard Brooks directs. Conrad Hall behind the camera. Quincy Jones scores. Peter Zinner cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $3.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Made its money back 3.7× over at the box office.
359 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Directed by Richard Brooks, shot by Conrad Hall. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Quincy Jones. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Peter Zinner shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Robert Blake and Scott Wilson and John Forsythe carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "The crime that shocked a nation.".
9IMDB entry: tt0061809 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Conrad Hall
Original score: Quincy Jones
Editing: Peter Zinner
Makeup / hair: Gary Morris
Runtime: 134 min · 2h 14m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $3,500,000
Box office: $13,007,551
Return: 372% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: In Cold Blood (1967)
Rotten Tomatoes: 75% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 89/100
IMDB rating: 7.9/10 · 32,154 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

Nominated for 4 Oscars. 4 wins & 11 nominations total

National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Richard Brooks

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2024-10-27
★ 7/10
This is one of those stories that really does epitomise the venality and cruelty of man! For the sum of $10,000 allegedly hidden in the safe of the rural "Clutter" family, two parolees come up with a plan to relieve them of their cash. "Dick" (Scott Wilson) is the architect of their plan. He's a nasty piece of work who is quite capable of manipulating the slightly less outwardly aggressive "Perry" (Robert Blake) into raiding the place then absconding for a life in comfort in nearby Mexico. Of course, the best laid plans etc., and pretty soon these two men top a most wanted list and are pursued by the doggedly shrewd cop "Dewey" (John Forsythe). It's based around a true story as interpreted by Truman Capote and essentially comes in two chapters. The first establishes the characters and the crime, the second the pursuit and it's consequences - and Richard Brooks adapts the story and directs these two chunks with considerable aplomb. There are also strong performances from the two men whose aspiration becomes desperation in double quick time, but who still struggle to display any semblance of human decency - except, maybe, when collecting refundable glass. There's precious little graphic violence here, but there's plenty of it implied and left to our imagination. Perhaps that's more potently delivered when it's mixed, especially by Blake, with at times a sort of gentleness and consideration - an almost childish style of behaviour. There are plenty of psychological aspects of their persona to evaluate as this progresses and that's as much of interest to "Dewey" as it becomes to us. The scoring also adds powerfully to the general menace, as does the frequently mobile and intense photography and at times there's almost a temptation to feel just a little sorry for these obviously flawed men as fate takes it's inevitable steps. Well worth a watch, I'd say - it's a complex analysis of two men with few boundaries.

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