‘Fargo’ is an American dark comedy crime film written, produced and directed by Ethan and Joel Coen. It follows the intertwining stories of Marge Gunderson investigating the murder of two people and Jerry Lundegard as man who hires two criminals to kidnap his wife. The film stars McDormand, Macy, Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare, Harve Presnell and John Carrol Lynch. It was released in 1996 by Gramercy Pictures and is in color. The film garnered critical acclaim, seven Academy Awards nominations, winning two for Best Original Screenplay and Best Leading Actress, as well as a host of other awards including a BAFTA for Best Director.
‘Fargo’ follows the story of Jerry Lundegard, a man living in Minnesota, in 1987, with his family and is struggling as a car salesman. One night, Jerry is introduced to two criminals Carl Showalter and Gaear Grisrud. He hires the two men to kidnap his wife Jean and ransom her for $80,000, since her father (also Jerry’s boss), Wade Gustafson is wealthy. The kidnapping goes well, but on the way back to their hideout, they are stopped by a state trooper. Gaear promptly shoots him. A few moments later a couple in a car passes, to which Gaear gives chase, eventually killing them too. The next morning Marge Gunderson, a local police chief who is seven months pregnant, starts to investigate the homicides. The worlds of Jerry Lundegard and Marge Gunderson are about to collide as Jerry works for a shady ransom, while Marge works toward finding this murderer.
I love Joel and Ethan Coen, they’re my favorite directors, writers, etc. But somehow, after all these years, I’d never seen ‘Fargo.’ I’m extremely disappointed in myself because this film is pretty awesome. The filming style of these two men is impeccable, and the dreary style they brought to desolate Minnesota (and yes Fargo, North Dakota) is amazing. Right from the opening shot, we get a sense that this isn’t going to be a very bright film. We see a lonely car, driving down a long, dark and snow filled highway, for what looks like the first time in a month this road has seen a car. This happens pretty often throughout the film and really portrays this part of the country in a dreary light. In contrast, when we do see a more rural area, it looks great, like the first time Carl and Gaear go to Minneapolis and we see the skyline. That’s a great shot that stuck with me, because of how different it really is from the bleak, snow covered roads further out.
The lighting, or at times it seems, the lack thereof is an awesome addition in this film. The daytime scenes look great, well as great as industrial snowy town can look and feels genuine and great. It’s the scenes at night that really stick out to me. The headlights hitting the snow on a dark road is awesome. The chase scene culminating in the car flip and murder was awesome. The headlights in the darkness, the sense of anxiousness and finally the payoff was great. The show down, I guess you could call it on top of the parking garage was a great moment as well. The darkness as a backdrop, the only lights being flood lights to help drivers navigate, culminating in a shootout, makes the scene look phenomenal.
