Director:Joel Coen
Released: 1996
Stars: Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi,William H. Macy and Harve Presnell
Genre: Crime/Drama/Thriller
Country: USA
Jerry Lundegaard is in a financial jam and, out of desperation, comes up with a plan to hire someone to kidnap his wife and demand ransom from her wealthy father, to be secretly split between Jerry and the perpetrators. Jerry, who is not the most astute of individuals, hires a couple of real losers from the frozen northern reaches of Fargo, North Dakota for the job. Then things begin to slip from bad to worse as Jerry helplessly watches on.
Oddly I'm a complete newcomer when it comes to the cinema of Joel and Ethan Cohen. This is only the third film of theirs that I've seen, the other two being Oh Brother Where Art Thou? and the brilliant No Country For Old Men, which I loved from last year. After watching this and my opinion on No Country For Old Men, I really must search for other DVD's by them because, what I've seen so far have a uniquness about them, orginality. Which is key to any succesful film.
Fargo is based around true events and set in 1987 in Minneapolis. Most of the characters are based around the actual people around those events but names have been changed. This imediatly sets you thinking as a viewer about what exactly are you about to watch, This adds a touch of realism to the sequences that follow and you really start to believe each and every thing that happens. The characters in Fargo, feel like real people and not in any way manipulated by the writers to be something they're not. You really feel that this sort of thing could happen to anyone at any given time. The main lead, played by the very underated William H Macy, was doing something I'm ure any one of us could understand, given the recent ecomnomc problems in the US and the UK. You feel that what you are happening mirrors that of your own life in some repects.
Fargo was nominated for seven academy awards and won 2. One of which was Best Writing, which is more than deserves. The script is absolutly brilliant. What was excellent was the over-use of" Ya" constanly through out the film, which gives you a sense of the accent in that state, It also makes for some hilaious sequences. I'm sure I laughed several times the film, in particular when we see two characters exchanging the Ya's in the film. Very funny indeed. the script plays well thoughout the film and the dialogue is realitsic for each character.
I'm sure Fargo is one of the best crim dramas that I've seen, perhaps not up there with Pulp Fiction, but extremly close to. Fargo has some stunning cinematogrphy in it. Most notably the snow surrounding the state, gives a sense of the isolation in the town.
Acting is just perfect. I loved William H Macy's very underated role as Jerry Lundegaard. He really suited his role and I'm sure I haven't seen him in anything quite like that before and he rightly got an Academy Award nomination. Frances McDormand is pitch perfect as Police Chief Marge Gunderson into her first homicide investigation. She's incredibly funny to watch in this film and is an extremly likeable character. Also worth mentioning Steve Buscemi in another great role. One to check out there.
Probably the most jaw dropping scene in the film is that Woodchipper Scene, which I don't think I've seen anything quite like that before. The noise of that woodchipper was so loud that you really didn't quite know what you were in for. Hilarious nonetheless.
Fargo is possibly one of the greatest crima dramas you'll. The realism in this is fantastic and you'll laugh, be shocked and watch in awe of the greatness in this film and the great Coen brothers. Such an amazing film. Watch out for the great score aswell.
A Minneapolis car salesman (William H. Macy) is in desperate need of money and hires two thugs (Peter Stormare and Steve Buscemi) to kidnap his wife in order to get his father-in-law to come up with some money for ransom. Of course things go wrong in this typical 'crime-goes-wrong' film that is pretty much overhyped. Still "Fargo" has a solid plot, a great cast and is nicely directed.
Fargo is one of the best crime dramas that I have ever seen. This film is absolutely awesome. So awesome I think it should have won Best Picture instead of The English Patient. The acting in this film was absolutely superb particularly from Frances McDormands Oscar winning performance as Officer Marge Gunderson and William H. Macys Oscar nominated performance as car dealer Jerry Lundergaard. Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare were really good as thugs Carl Showalter and Gaear Grimsrud. This film is very similar to No Country For Old Men particularly as far as getting money is concerned and some of the characters are similar. Carl and Gaears characters are similar to Anton Chigurh with the cold blooded character. Jerrys character was really cold aswell after he wanted to have his wife kidnapped and then tries to earn the ransom from his rich father-in-law. The Coen Brothers triumph again just like they did with No Country For Old Men and The Big Lebowski. After watching all three of these films I am a big fan of the Coen Brothers now. This film is so graphic. This is one of the most graphic film noir films I have ever watched. That is another way that this film is so good and that links so well with Joel and Ethan Coen. It was very clever that both of them wrote this film and how they both did two different jobs in this film. Joel was the director and Ethan was the producer. This will be one of greatest crime thrillers of all time for a very long time.
Fargo is a modern comedy/thriller that just cannot be hated. Frances McDormand is perfect in the title role as is the supporting cast. Somehow the Coen brothers mix humor with suspense and thrills and pull it off. A great movie.
This is a great movie from the Coen's. Its a true story based movie about murders etc.. everything is good , acting and story. And there is truly some great actors like the fun Steve Buscemi along with Peter Stormare which fits perfect in this role as the mad silent killer. So if u like murder stories with a perfect script and well made flick , enjoy..
I had heard many great things about this movie, and while it still holds up as a good film, that's as far as it gets. Sure, it's a classic Coen Bros. film it just seems like an alright flick. Everything is solid but not really anything to write home about. Pick it up if you want a good murder mystery to make you think.
Funny, chilling and overwhelmingly humane all in one. If the Coens meant the ending as a joke they failed. McDormand's character had become an angel of sanity, goodness and hope by that point.
After watching the movie I went on the internet to find out more about this story and found out that it is based on the murder of "Helle Crafts" who was killed by her husband and disposed of with a woodchipper. Now this movie is supposed to be based on true story, but the only thing that corrisponds to the story in the movie is that there is a woodchipper! One of the Coen brothers said :"If an audience believes that something's based on a real event, it gives you permission to do things they might otherwise not accept.". I thing this is perfectly true, infact initially I gave it a higher rating, but after finding out that practically nothing is true, it disappointed me a bit
Really good storytelling. Frances McDormand is once again incredible, with her calm, soothing voice. The rest of the cast is also great! Definitely a must-see!
I love the Coen brothers and apparently this is supposed to be their masterpiece - I think I was too young when I saw it but I didn't get it. I'll give it another chance someday.
Brilliant. It is a pretty dark comedy. It made me cringe, but also made me laugh. It was an emotions roller coaster. I didn't know whether I should pity or hate the main characters.
I hated this movie. I know that's not a popular idea, but in reality all this movie consists of is a bunch of people talking funny, and they even stop the story to install a ridiculous romantic twist that contributes nothing other than the absurd novelty of an Asian speaking in that annoying accent everyone else has in the film.
Offbeat story, but interesting..acting by Macy and Buscemi make this film..and their performances are not to be missed..a bit over the top with some gore, but this is one off-kilter movie and will hold your interest..and have you talking in that swedish accent no doubt!
After seeing this movie a second time, I can safely say I missed something upon my first viewing only giving this movie a 4/5 rating. While some say this movie is one of the best ever made I will offer a peaceful contradiction. This is not the BEST movie ever but it is an amazing movie. A solid script and Peter Stormare plays one of the creepiest on-screen presences in any film I have ever seen. Also, the cinematography is beautiful offering some truly gruesome scenes (the wood-chipper scene is unforgettable) and some great landscape shots as well. The cast also deserves major credit with solid performances all around with a great William H. Macy role, and one of my fav Steve Buscemi roles (although Mr. Pink will always remain my favourite lol), and Frances McDormand is great even though I would be unable to comment on any other movie she has been in. Definitely a classic, this is a solid movie by the Coen bros. and I will be looking forward to their work in the future.
Oh I have sooooo many things to say about this movie...so I'll try to keep it short...I LOVE FARGO!!!!:)Ok...no jk, first of all the Cohen brothers are movie geniuses and they have done a ton of movies that I consider to be in my top 10 favorites, 2nd Steve Buscemi, William H. Macy, Peter Storemare and Frances McDormand in one movie ok that just screams good!! Fargo's story and plot are great and funny...gory and rather grotesque considering Peter sends his accomplice through the wood chipper...ewwwwwww but that adds to the dark humor of this movie which sadly only a few people understand and enjoy...like me.:)
It's good but not deserving more praise than many of the other more amazing Coen films (Miller's Crossing, Barton Fink). It's getter better with each viewing.
i had high hopes for this movie both because i love the coen brothers & steve buscemi is my man. the storyline was great, it was funnier than intense, and although frances mcdormand was cute & quirky, i really don't see her performance as being "best actress" worthy. just my opinion. however, buscemi once again made the movie for me, as he always does. i would watch it numerous times again, but still wish more would've been done. forgot to mention that william h. macy did a wonderufl job at playing a sucker again. :)
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