I recently watched and review No Country For Old Men, a movie directed by The Coen Brothers. It was the first movie of theirs I had ever watched, and even though I was disappointed by that particular movie, I did notice the amazing directing and cinematography behind it. Based on this, I decided to watch some more of their movies, the first one being Fargo, and oh man. Oh man. Fargo takes place in the winter of 1987, in a couple of small towns in northern Minneapolis. It centers around a spineless, greedy and slow witted man called Jerry Lundegaard, played by William H. Macy, a benign, goodhearted and willfull police detective called Marge Gunderson, played by Frances McDormand, and a couple of ruthless and murderous criminals, played by Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare. I wont go into too much depth concerning the actual plot of the movie in fear of spoiling too much for those who have not seen Fargo yet, which is something I very strongly suggest you go ahead and do right away, but it also isn't what i want to talk about concerning this movie.
Just like No Country For Old Men, this Coen movie has a message. In the case of No Country, the message was that you cannot outrun death and evil, but that you instead should come to terms with your faith and admit that you're not in control of everything that happens around you. Many people, myself included, will probably consider this a very cynical and nihilistic way of approaching life, but after watching Fargo, I've realised that the Coens do not applaud a such sad and indifferent view of life. The way this comes to show in Fargo is through the main character Marge Gunderson. This police detective is probably the most goodhearted and forgivefull character I've seen in cinema, and even though she seems a little distracted, she is just such a good person. So much so that the most cynical and psychotic of the two criminals actually end up being "saved" by her.
As such, I'm 100 % convinced that she was intended to symbolise some sort of salvation, maybe even a savior. I say this because even though the movie is very violent and bloody, it leaves the audience with a feeling like there's still hope, as long as people like Marge still exists, as if good is still better than evil. This is very much the polar opposite of what No Country For Old Men taught us, which is fascinating, because is shows just how much perspectives and outlooks on life can vary. The fact that the Coens have managed to create two such similar yet different movies is also a testimony to their amazing ability to tell stories and make the audience go though different kinds of emotional states. It's also worth noting that Javier Bardem won an oscar for his portrayal of "the devil" in No Country For Old Men, and that Frances McDormand won one for best actress in Fargo as "the savior".
One my favourite things about Fargo, is the fact that it's incredibly funny, and at the same time filled with drama and intensity. As mentioned before, this movie is very violent and graphic, and when you combine that with a really dry, yet brilliant humoristic touch and do it well, the result is absolutely amazing. Many of Jerry Lundegaard's lines made me laugh out loud, he's just such an awkward and goofy character that i simply couldn't help it. Another indescribably funny thing about Fargo is the accent and vocabulary that the characters make use of throughout the movie. You can't imagine how incredibly entertaining it is to listen to someone use the phrase "a'tootelin" in a serious manner.
When it comes down to it, Fargo is well acted, well written, has a great script and is very well directed. It's funny, it's violent, intense and dramatic, a movie that every movie enthusiast should watch. You can just feel how much effort the directors and the crew behind the movie put into creating this picture, and it's no wonder that Fargo is considered a classic already. I realise that this review hasn't been as in depth and furrow as some of my earlier ones, but i really just wanted to write about the art of creating symbolic and meaningful cinema in itself, hence the many references to No Country For Old men. In the end I have to say Fargo is one of the most well written and solidly created movies I've ever seen, and not giving it my highest rating would be a dishonour. In my opinion, Fargo is story telling at it's finest and character development at it's best. Put simply; it's movie magic. (6/6)
Fargo IMDb page here
Fargo trailer here
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