Fargo (film)

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Fargo is a 1996 neo-noir film created by brothers Joel and Ethan Coen. It tells the tale of a used car sales man (William H. Macy), a pregnant police chief (Frances McDormand), and two bumbling hit men.

The film was well received by critics and won many awards. It is commonly known for the heavy northern accents and the infamous woodchipper scene.

Contents

1 Plot
2 Primary cast
3 Awards
4 Trivia
5 External links

Plot

[Spoiler warningSpoiler warning]: Plot and/or ending details follow.

The movie tells the story of Jerry Lundegaard (William H. Macy), a Minnesota car salesman with financial troubles who hires two men, the "funny looking" Carl Showalter (Steve Buscemi) and the laconic Gaear Grimsrud (Peter Stormare), to kidnap his wife to obtain an $80,000 ransom from his wealthy father-in-law, Wade Gustafson (Harve Presnell). In exchange, the kidnappers are to receive a new car and half of the ransom.

The plan falls apart when a state trooper pulls over the kidnappers near Brainerd, Minnesota. After an unsuccessful bribe attempt by Showalter, Grimsrud murders the policeman and two witnesses who drive by.

The deaths are investigated by local police chief Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand) who, while seven months pregnant, follows leads through Minneapolis, the backwoods of Minnesota, and nearby North Dakota.

Fargo won two Oscars in 1996 (best screenplay writing and best actress), a BAFTA and several other international film awards.

There are prominent film noir elements in the filming and writing of Fargo, and some critics consider it a modern classic in the genre. Roger Ebert has included it in his list of 'Great movies'.

Spoilers end here.

Primary cast

Frances McDormand – Marge Gunderson

Frances McDormand as "Marge Gunderson."

William H. Macy – Jerry Lundegaard
Steve Buscemi – Carl Showalter
Harve Presnell – Wade Gustafson
Peter Stormare – Gaear Grimsrud

Awards

Award wins:

Award nominations:

Trivia

Though completely fictional, the opening titles claim that it is "a true story" that "took place in Minnesota in 1987." The end credits bear the standard disclaimer for a work of fiction.

The entire film takes place in Minnesota, with the exception of a short scene in the eponymous Fargo, North Dakota at the beginning, and another short scene near Bismarck, North Dakota at the end. Most of the action is set near Brainerd, Minnesota and in the Minneapolis suburbs.

The car dealership featured in the movie was in the Minneapolis suburb of Richfield. It was actually "Wally McCarthy Oldsmobile" off of Interstate 494 and Penn Avenue. The business has since been razed, and the site is currently home to Best Buy's corporate headquarters.

The King of Clubs bar shown at the beginning of the film was actually located within walking distance of downtown Minneapolis.

Many in Minnesota and North Dakota took offense to the heavy accents in the film.^{[[Citing sources citation needed]]}

Unseasonably mild winter weather forced the crew to move locations frequently to find suitable snow-covered landscapes, and fake snow had to be used for many scenes. Pools and streams of meltwater are visible in many scenes.

The scene in the car dealership where Jerry talks to the couple about the TruCoat on the car is based on Ethan Coen's actual experience with a car salesman.

In 1997 a pilot was filmed for a television show based on the film. Set in Brainerd, it starred Edie Falco as Marge Gunderson. It was shown during Trio's 2003 "Brilliant But Cancelled" series of failed TV shows.

In 2001 a Japanese woman, Takako Konishi, was found dead near Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. It was widely claimed at the time that she had frozen to death while looking for the money hidden in the movie, but there is little evidence to support this hypothesis. Based on the presence of sedatives in her system and a letter sent to her family, her death was ruled a suicide.^{[[Citing sources citation needed]]}

There have been many parodies of the famous woodchipper scene. In an episode of FOX's The Bernie Mac Show, Bernie Mac hired Jordan to destroy Baby Girl's beloved doll. Jordan throws the doll into a woodchipper. The scene was also used as the basis of a snow globe packaged with a home edition of the film in the late 1990s.

The piece of music titled "Paul Bunyon", by Carter Burwell, appears twice in the movie. The first time, it's pitch black out because of being in the middle of nowhere at night, while the second time, it's blindingly white out, due to fresh snow at noontime.

External links

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