Fargo A Film Review By Michael Redman Copyright 1996 By Michael Redman
*** (out of ****)
The first thing you notice about this movie is that it's cold. Placed in Minnesota and North Dakota during the winter, many of the scenes take place outside with long scenes of snow-covered ground against a background of white. Just what we need as Bloomington struggles out of the endless long cold night.
As with most Coen brothers films, this features outlandish characters in nefarious schemes, each of which works out in the oddest way possible. A car salesman hires a couple of hoods to kidnap his wife so that he can collect the ransom from her father. Along the way everything that can possibly go wrong does. In brief scenes of vicious violence, people get shot through the head, in the back, face, chest and various other areas of the anatomy. There is also one of the most unpleasant body disposal scenes yet seen on the screen.
Remarkably enough, most of the movie is played for laughs.
Even more remarkably, it works.
The only likable person in the film is the very pregnant sheriff (Frances McDormand) who hunts down the killers while eating at every possible opportunity.
With every good film the audience gains new knowledge. Here you learn _two_ things. Everyone in Minnesota speaks in an annoying whining accent that would drive you crazy. And don't do violent illegal business with low-life amoral degenerate scum-sucking losers. Oh yeah, if you get shot in the face, using a brightly decorated napkin to stop the bleeding just makes you look goofy.
[This appeared in the 4/18/96 "Bloomington Voice", Bloomington, Indiana. Michael Redman can be contacted at redman@bvoice.com]
-- mailto:redman@bvoice.com This week's film review at http://www.bvoice.com/ Film reviews archive at http://us.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Michael%20Redman
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