147 of 1001 Movies: Fargo (1996)

Fargo has got to be the best Coen brother movie I've seen so far. Mostly because of Marge!  Fargo though also has to be one of the darkest movies I've seen. The contrast of this beautiful landscape with the snow, and the murders happening within the story are so dark. The movie is perfectly cast though, with every actor probably giving the highlight performance of their career thus far. There are so many things that I just noticed about the movie that I hadn't noticed about others that caused it to appeal to me.

Summary: Jerry is wanting to get money from his wealthy father-in-law, and makes a plan to get it. This plan involves kidnapping his wife. When things go awry though, as the men he got involved don't mind killing whoever, and he has a police woman who is determined to investigate the crime until she has it solved. Jerry though believes his plan to get his father-in-law to believe the kidnapping, and getting his wife back can still work out. Marge though is closer than ever to finding the people responsible and revealing the whole stunt.


Acting: The odd blend of this movie being dark with the comedy is perfectly portrayed by the cast. They are in these very grim situations, but yet they handle it with a lightness that is conveyed not only in the dialogue, but their facial expressions. Frances McDormand plays Marge, the woman determined to investigate this crime, and figure it out. I like how feminine yet strong her character is, plus there is this quirkiness about her that is just fun. I think McDormand shows how versatile she can be by showing how strong Marge's personality is, but also showing her hope for humanity as well. Nothing really shocks her, but yet she tries to think the best. Also, William H. Macy probably is in one of his best roles as Jerry. There is no other person that could have played Jerry. He just doesn't seem too bright, but you can tell how he ended up in this situation.

Filming: If there was anything that stood out to me besides acting it was the way the movie was shot. There are so many lines formed everywhere, and it takes the bleary scenes of snow and livens it up with unique angles. The movie is just perfect composition. Not only that but snow can be so easily bleak, and yet very bright and lively. There is such dark happenings going on in this town though underneath what appears something chirpy. It's really well contrasted.

Plot: On top of the acting and cinematography the story is also very intriguing. I don't think the story of course would quite be the same without the acting though. The dialogue is well written though, and while the movie has these wild antics the motives and lives of the characters feel true to life. And while Jerry may seem like a nice guy you really end up despising him!

Fargo ended up being one of my favorite movies. I think when something is so good there is actually almost too little to say about it because you can't really sum up all that you liked about it. I enjoyed the plot, the way the movie was filmed, the acting, and the characters. Also the movie is quite short, and I like how quickly it sums everything up.

Rating 9 of 10.