Fargo analysis

If an audience believes that something's based on a real event, it gives you permission to do things they might otherwise not accept

-The Coen Brothers

In the award-winning movie Fargo, the Coen Brothers portray a tragic albeit humorous story of the staged kidnapping of a local Minnesota woman in order to financially benefit both the criminals involved and the woman’s husband. The husband, played by William H. Macy, hires the said two crooks (Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare) under advice from a coworker with the hope that his wealthy father-in-law will payout $1,000,000 in ransom, with only $40,000 going to the felons and Macy pocketing the rest. The plot is eventually foiled by the mother-to-be policewoman Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand), who investigates a triple homicide committed by the hired criminals in the small Minnesota town of Brainerd.

From the start of the movie, the subtle humor of the Coen Brothers is evident, beginning with the opening saying that the events of the film are based on a true story. This proves to be false, although creating the impression that it is a true story essentially allows the Coen Brothers to manipulate different elements of the movie to nonconventional standards. They are able to craft the writing and characterization to juxtapose the “Minnesota nice” ambience with the severity of a kidnapping, ransom, and four homicides. The setting of the movie provides a big driving point of the movie, as it depicts rural and suburban Minnesota, in which crime seems rare, although the Brainerd police department’s dialogue regarding the triple homicide remains calm and unwavering.

Much of the economic implications from the film are derived from William H. Macy’s character Jerry Lundegard’s attempt to desperately make money from a staged kidnapping and subsequent ransom of his wife. His analysis of the potential situation fails to consider the mission going awry, unable to predict the triple homicide and the subsequent events. He remains emotionally detached in the beginning stages of the movie, possessing no consideration for the emotion of his father-in-law who is supposed to provide the ransom for the return of his wife. He keeps his interactions with his father-in-law and McDormand’s character brief and calm, quietly expressing the criminals’ wishes to keep their interactions solely with Macy’s character. More economic perspective is provided from the viewpoint of the criminals hired by Macy to kidnap his wife. They attempt to maintain their end of the bargain in order to fulfill their duties for their payment, but when things go awry they find no problem in killing off characters who could foil their plot.

Almost all sides involved in the story maintain financial interest despite the severity of the situation, with the relationship between the characters indicating a constant power struggle in order to achieve their respective end goals. Macy’s character indicates to the hired criminals that he will split half of the purported $80,000 ransom along with a new car, although he intends from the beginning on forcing his father-in-law to payout more than that for the retrieval of his wife to benefit him financially. The father-in-law, played by Harve Presnell, remains reluctant throughout the film on paying out the price, noting in his initial discussion post-kidnapping with Macy’s character that “a million dollars is a lot of damn money” before later expressing concern about getting his daughter back. Although he expresses that he wants to take personal responsibility for the retrieval of his wife, the undertone of the film indicates he is unwilling to fully cooperate physically and financially with the criminals. Of course, the humor of the movie derives from the calm demeanor with which all the characters interact, with the exception of Buscemi and Formare. This difference between them and the rest of the characters is noted by Marge at the scene of the triple homicide, saying “They’re probably not from Brainerd!” in reference to who killed the cop and two kids.

In terms of psychoanalysis, Macy’s character remains persistent in believing that the outcome of the kidnapping scenario will go in his favor. He reiterates to his son that things will end okay, and his son’s concern that the ransom could go awry further portrays Macy’s belief in the success of his plan as unwavering. He is pulled in different directions throughout the movie, showcasing his role as a husband, son-in-law, salesman at a local car dealership, and involvement with criminality. He is frequently frustrated within the movie with keeping all of these roles in tact, and eventually taking on too much at one time proves to be his ultimate downfall, in which he is arrested in the end of the movie with his assocation with the kidnapping.

Frances McDormand provides an exemplary performance in this movie. Her character of Marge remains emotionally pure, combining the “Minnesota nice” with her role as a local cop. Her profession juxtaposes well with her role as a wife and mother-to-be. She never raises her voice in the movie, providing a calm demeanor that pervades even in the scenes following the triple homicide or when Lundegard flees the interview. Her dress and pregnant shape only add to her dominant role both at home and the workplace, garnering the love and attention of her coworkers and husband. She is almost always seen in her uniform, and her towering and full stature symbolize her dominance over the other characters within Fargo.

The Coen Brothers employ mise en scène extensively in Fargo, incorporating the bleak Minnesota setting . One scene that can be thoroughly analyzed in terms of shot and setting is that of the first murder of the triple homicide. The criminals drive into Brainerd in the bleak of the night, with the Paul Bunyan statue ominously portrayed in their entry. The low angle from with the statue is seen coupled with the lighting on the sign contrasted with the darkness of a cold winter night foreshadow the succeeding events. When a cop pulls over the criminals’ car moments later due to expired tags, not much visual information about the cop is provided in order to downplay the significance of the character over the situation at hand. .

The shift of camera angle from detailing the confined space of the car to the panoramic views of the outside scenery contrast well, especially in bleakness of the night. The shots of the interior of the car represent the entrapment which envelops Buscemi and Forgare, with Forgare constantly shown at a lower angle than the cop, especially from the outside view. The panoramic view with which we see Forgare drag the cop’s dead body after Buscemi shoots him has the dark red blood contrasting well with not only the blackness of the night, but also the pristine white, snow-covered fields. This seems to symbolize a sense of purity with which reflects the cop as simply an innocent bystander in a grander, albeit humorous plotline.

Moreover, mise en scene can be seen strongly again in one of the closing scenes where McDormand’s character shoots down Buscemi’s. As someone who is clearly eight months pregnant, her witnessing and treatment of seeing Buscemi stick his accomplice’s dead body in a woodchipper with blood splattering everywhere over the cold Minnesota snow landscape should strike the viewer as surreal. McDormand waits to shoot him until he is at least running partway across a frozen lake, though she does not shoot him dead and has a calm, albeit demoralizing conversation in her police trooper back to Brainerd.

The writing and sound of the movie provide much of the subtle humor associated with the Coen Brothers, contrasting well with the seriousness of the plotline. Again, the “Minnesota nice” pervades throughout the film, allowing the viewer to relax in key scenes such as the triple homicide to appreciate the satirical elements of the film. The strong Minnesota accents help characterize the state and transport the viewer to the bleak northern Midwest

In the end, it remains clear why the film garnered so much critical attention and awards. The way that the Coen Brothers crafted the story, characters, setting and cinematography exemplify their directing prowess, solidifying Fargo as a piece of the American film canon. Exceptional performances were provided by all of the actors involved, but McDormand’s stood out as she was completely engulfed by the mom-to-be, chief of police of Brainerd, combining her different roles at home and the workplace.