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In Cold Blood

1381 Words6 Pages

In 1959, the Kansas town of Holcomb was left horrified after the murders of the Clutter family. The shocking murder caught both the attention and hearts of those who learnt of it. In 1966, Truman Capote brilliantly captured the acts of the murders in his book “In Cold Blood”. Shortly after in 1967, Richard Brooks released the adaptation to Truman’s book, “In Cold Blood” which uniquely captures the essence of the murdered and the murderers. Capote and Brooks depicted the killers, Perry Smith and Dick Hickock in two comparably different lights While observing both works of “In Cold Blood” various differences and similarities stand out including: the portrayal of Bonnie Clutter’s illness, how the murderers are, and amount of time dedicated to …show more content…

While both men undoubtedly had a hand in the Clutter murder’s certain characteristics are taken into consideration by the audience. In many instances it is difficult not to excuse Perry from his behaviors. Both the novel and the movie depict Perry as the more compassionate of the pair, while showing Dick as the short tempered know it all. While reading and watching the murders one will pick up on the fact Dick never strays from his train of thought. Perry on the other hand falters with the acts of violence and even tells Dick they should leave since there is no safe. The comparison of the killers’ appearance also comes into play while observing both the novel and the movie. Perry’s baby-face coupled with his short stature and sensitivity only adds to the audience wanting to dismiss him of his actions. Dick on the other hand is described as masculine. Other than appearance the men’s background can also be compared. Perry’s home life can be interpreted as rough from both works of “In Cold Blood”. It is easily decided within the audience which killer was dealt the lower hand in life. With Perry having to deal with both an abusive father and a mother succumbing to the temptations of alcohol, he is looked upon as the unlucky child who grew up in the wrong conditions. Realizing the killer who was handed a better childhood turned into a ruthless killer leads the audience into blaming Dick completely for his actions as he has nothing to fall back on as a scapegoat. Perry can be said to have a sense of level headedness about him, although not enough to stop the murder altogether. A large contribution of the tolerance for Perry comes from his sensitivity for those who cannot control themselves sexually. If Perry were to partake, or allow Dick to “bust” the young Clutter the tolerance for him would have decreased

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