Franklin thought the work was more than a detective story; he said that Mosley was able to transform an everyday guy into a detective. In the editing process, Franklin had to cut a steamy love scene between Beals and Washington because he believed the scene was not needed to convey the story. Don Cheadle originally did not want to audition for Mouse because he thought he was too young for the role. Locations The film was shot mostly in Los Angeles, California. The pier shot where Easy Rawlins gets in trouble with local youths was filmed at the Malibu, California pier. Other locales in Los Angeles include the Griffith Park Observatory and the famed Ambassador Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard. Distribution The producers used the following tagline to market the film: In a world divided by black and white, Easy Rawlins is about to cross the line. Devil in a Blue Dress premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 16, 1995. In the United States, it opened in wide release on September 29, 1995. In its widest release the film was featured in 1,432 theaters across the country. Home media Devil in a Blue Dress was released on VHS on April 2, 1996, and then on laserdisc in June 1996. A DVD version was released on 9 March 1999. Twilight Time released on the film on Blu-ray on October 13, 2015. Reception Critical response On Rotten Tomatoes, Devil in a Blue Dress has an approval rating of 92%, based on reviews from 118 critics, with an average score of 7.50/10. Its critical consensus reads: "Humor, interesting characters, and attention to details make the stylish Devil in a Blue Dress an above average noir." On Metacritic the film has a score of 78 out of 100, based on reviews from 21 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade A− on scale of A to F. In a positive film review, critic James Berardinelli discussed Devil in a Blue Dress from a sociological viewpoint, especially one involving the 1990s. He concludes, "The most interesting element of Devil in a Blue Dress is not the whodunit, but the 'whydunit.' Finding the guilty parties isn't as involving as learning their motivation, which is buried in society's perception of racial interaction. By uncovering the truth behind this mystery, Franklin illustrates that some attitudes have indeed changed for