Marrge is in a sticky situation in Fargo
“The heck do ya mean?”
-Jerry Lundegaard
*Spoiler Alert*
If there is any genre that the great writing, directing team
the Coen brothers are good at it’s black comedy. Their best is easily their
crime film/black comedy crossover Fargo a film that captures an unforgettable
atmosphere of darkness and humor. Fargo is also a great crime film that
perfectly captures the time, place, and creepiness of the story laid within.
Fargo, according to the opening titles, is “based on a true
story” something of which can be considered a tongue and cheek claim that sets
the viewer up for the events to come. What comes next is a wacky yet restrained
and atmospheric film about the ineptitude of criminals and investigators throughout
the investigation of a car salesman Jerry Lundegaard who hires two henchmen
(played by Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare) to kidnap his own wife to get
money he needed from his father in law. The film opens on the two ridiculous henchmen
Steve Buschemi’s screw up henchman and Peter Stormare’s something is not quite
right henchman. The next introduction we get is the yang to the henchmen’s eying
which is the cold, dark and snowy Fargo North Dakota filmed beautifully by the
great Roger Deakins. The great contrast between the atmosphere and the characters
that live in it is one of the great factors in the film and hammers home the
two tones and styles present in the film.
The other great aspect is the investigation and dramatic
irony within. Francis McDormand’s pregnant investigator is one of the most
pleasurable and fun characters to watch on screen. The stereotypical North Dakota
dialogue, written brilliantly by the Coens, helps bring home some of the whimsy
and the creepiness of the town and the characters that embody it such as
Francis McDormand’s brilliant investigator Marge. The other brilliant part of
the investigation is the dramatic irony present within it. The audience knows
how stupid the kidnapping plot is and how wrong is going and it’s fun to watch
Marge try to put together the pieces while interviewing continuesly more insane
people and ultimately getting nowhere.
Then there is the ending. The film takes a dark turn near
the end as the plan continues to go array resulting in the disturbing woodchipper
scene which leaves an unforgettable scar on the viewer. The sequence is best
watched and is again an example of the amazing contrast used in the film as
following the scene is a generally happy ending that masks the horrid things
that came before. It’s brilliant!
-Frederick Cholowski
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