8th March, 1996, saw the release of Fargo...
I feel ashamed to admit that I only watched Fargo recently, unfortunately it has just been one of those films that has slipped past me. I am a fan of the Coen Brothers and have seen many of their films, but Fargo is one of those films that I just missed. We all have one of those films that when you say to a friend that you’ve haven’t seen it they gasp and frown at your claim. We all have one, right?
However, I made up for my error this week, I sat down and watched Fargo. I liked it! It wasn’t surprising to read that the film received the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, beating Jerry Maguire and Secrets & Lies. The movie uses such a subtle tone that the viewer doesn’t know whether to laugh or cringe. Even when we are watching the ‘wood chipper’ scene there is a sense of comedy that clouds the seriousness of the subject matter. It is not only the screenplay that gives the sense of the farcical, the clever camera work and direction also questions the validity of the scenes. The way the film plants you firmly in between the comedic and disbelief is amazing, and its this that makes the film a piece of genius.
McDormand wasn’t the only stand out actor in this film, Steve Buscemi and William H. Macy are, as ever, brilliant. Macy lost out to the Best Supporting Actor award at the Oscars to Cuba Gooding Jr. for his role in Jerry Maguire, which I’m not going to make a big fuss about, but I certainly hope the judges had a hard time with the decision, Macy’s performance is outstanding. Buscemi is as good as Carl Showalter, a great portrayal of a character doing their best to be a gangster, but failing miserably. It is astounding to think that an actor of such quality and with the list of films that he has starred in, has not received a nomination from the Academy. I am aware that the Oscars aren’t the measure of quality in the film world but it is still hard to believe that someone like Buscemi has not been acknowledged by this organisation.
As an avid film watcher, I am fascinated by the manner in which a series of images can display such meanings to an audience. Fargo is for me one of those films that could be like many other films but with those clever subtleties in the screenplay and characterisations and the ingenious direction it stands out above an average Hollywood movie. The journey that it takes you on, the questions it asks of the viewer and its ability to make the most shocking scene ridiculous gives as a wonderful film. The Coen Brothers are in no doubt masters of the screen and Fargo is evidence of that. At the beginning I said I liked this film, I’m wrong, I love it!
by Russell Farnham
The opening credits begin by leading you into a sense of the real, telling the viewer that the story is based on the truth, setting us up to ponder on whether what we are about to see actually happened. And to be honest, I watched the first 20 minutes or so believing that the film was true; some of the most bizarre stories are based on the truth, humankind can fashion some of the most surreal reality. It was when Frances McDormand came on screen that my trust diminished. Her performance is one of the highlights of the film for me, but her character’s flippant nature was cleverly created to make the audience question whether the story is based on truth. Marge (Frances McDormand) and Norm (John Carroll Lynch) are unforgettable characters and the way they take life and police work in their stride is refreshing, but also slightly unbelievable. There is no doubt that the Coen Brothers have written the characters this way to display the fact that this story is not based on truth. Joel & Ethan did claim that the incidents did happen separately but that they weren’t all part of one story. But it’s these characters, for me, that tell the watcher that this story didn’t happen.
