FARGO
A film review by Zak Forsman
Copyright 1997 Zak Forsman
A Whiter Shade of Pale
Directed by JOEL COEN Written by JOEL & ETHAN COEN Produced by ETHAN COEN
FRANCES MCDORMOND as Marge Gunderson WILLIAM H. MACY as Jerry Lundegaard STEVE BUSCEMI as Carl Showalter
The Coen Brothers' latest film, FARGO is a combination of their earlier works--specifically BLOOD SIMPLE and RAISING ARIZONA. I think what I'm trying to say is that FARGO is at one moment hilarious and then sharply horrifying. I've always had mixed feelings over violence on the movie screen. When watching TAXI DRIVER I'd be thinking that it just wouldn't be the same film without reaching that 'catharsis-through-urban-violence' finale. On the other hand, I went to see ERASER and felt that the violence there was indeed gratuitous. I had always felt that I was holding a double standard until I realized that what makes violence gratuitous is the integrity, or lack thereof, of the film exhibiting it. And in the case of FARGO, I found myself disgusted and horrified at what I was seeing as opposed to ERASER where alligators ripped arms from their sockets and the effect on me was minimal.
FARGO, which claims to be based on actual events but isn't, is the story of a car salesman (William H. Macy) who manifests a scheme to get nearly one-million dollars in ransom money for the kidnapping of his own wife. Her extremely wealthy, grumbling and growling father will be forced to pay. The film unfolds as nearly everything goes terribly wrong--sometimes funny, often frightening. We follow a pregnant police detective (Frances McDormond) as she uncovers the case. I won't go any further in case you haven't seen FARGO other than to tell you that I was skeptical as to how involved her character could be considering her physical condition. Let me tell you her character is well-engaged by the story and her involvement in the climax/resolution is truly memorable.
The film's screenplay was written with extreme care for detail and narrative verve, all too often absent from contemporary works. There are times, and this is a good example, when it is obvious that this screenplay had reached a fully developed and final draft before principle photography was started. The dialogue alone is so new and devoid of clich that the audience is (and this is rare) anticipating the characters' interaction instead of predicting it. Even in so called 'talking heads' scenes, we are mentally engaged by the film and certainly involved. Joel and Ethan Coen have consistently shown a talent for dialogue, storytelling and the ability to integrate both into the film's visual elements. They are also one of the few filmmakers with a signature--when you see a Coen Brothers film, you know it.
Not one actor in the film would be considered by a studio executive to headline a movie on their own. This is a cast of all those people you saw in supporting roles in other films. William H. Macy (Oleanna, Homicide, ER) is a veteran of David Mamet's plays and performs here flawlessly. He shapes his character so anxiously weak that we both condemn his for his acts of cowardice and pity him for his lack of social courage. Frances McDormond (Blood Simple, Raising Arizona) as the pregnant police chief on the case has herself one of the most original characters ever written. She is indeed quirky, and although quirkiness does not necessarily equal originality, McDormond grounds the character in truly human qualities. Then there is Steve Buscemi (Reservoir Dogs, Living in Oblivion) who's been doing similar characters since his supporting role in Martin Scorsese's short film, LIFE LESSONS from NEW YORK STORIES. Although his character in FARGO is not much different, this time he does not come off as though he's playing for the camera with the exception of a very funny, "total silence" monologue. Buscemi seems to be making a career out of playing himself and this is another of several films in which it works. Also, by the end of FARGO, his character is so viciously frustrated that it mirrors the "hilarious, but horrifying" theme of the film.
Although the screen credit for director goes to Joel Coen and the producer credit goes to Ethan, they have said that they actually share the two positions equally. In directing FARGO, the Coen brothers seem to hold back a little--using their trademark wide angle lens with more reverence. They save their more visual shots for sequences in which they won't smother the actors' performances and the story. In the context of this film, I think they've struck a perfect balance. Their best scene, I would say, is the triple homicide sequence at night--part of which was borrowed from their own BLOOD SIMPLE. I guess practice makes perfect.
Much has been made of the scene where Frances McDormond meets an old high-school friend, Mike, for lunch. Later in the film, we learn that Mike has had psychological problems and that everything he told Frances McDormond was a lie. Many claim the scene serves no purpose and, despite being well-written, should have been cut. My take on it is that even though she can deduce genuine facts presented to her, Frances McDormond's character, until this point, is unable to recognize deceit and human corruption. As with Mike, she must accept what William H. Macy's character had told her because she cannot see the possibility of his dishonesty. She just can't conceive such things. At one point she says, "I doubt our suspect is from Brainerd," because she thinks of evil as something abstract that comes from somewhere else. In this case, the Coen brothers chose to introduce deceit and corruption through Naturalism. Which is to say, something unrelated to the plot, affects and forwards it. Once Mike is exposed, she is able to question William H. Macy's sincerity and returns to press him further. I feel that each film has its own universe and many times its ideas, themes and other devices have to be introduced to the main character for them to be cinematicly valid. For example, in TAXI DRIVER, Martin Scorsese plays a man who tells Travis Bickle that he's going to kill his wife. He introduces "violence" into Travis' moral universe. Once exposed to it, he let's it consume him--and we all know where it takes him.
Many people have been turned off by their own uncertainty as to whether to laugh or cringe during this film. I know this was quite intentional and would expect that the Coens take it as a compliment to their work to have affected those people in such a manner. Anyway, FARGO is the best film that's come out all year and I don't see anything coming in the future to change that. It will certainly be nominated for Best Original Screenplay if not Best Picture. Joel Coen has already won the Directing Prize at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival. I highly recommend you see FARGO.
Writing: **** Directing: **** Acting: ****
Ratings are based on the four-star system.
Zak Forsman, filmmaker
Swan Pictures Independent http://www.epix.net/~swan/ swan@epix.net
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