Search Movie Review Archives

Peculiarity seems to be the Coen Brothers' stock in trade when it comes to making movies, and "Fargo," perhaps their most praised effort in a long string of widely acclaimed successes like "Miller's Crossing" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?", is no stranger to this. The outline of the story is based on fact, mirroring the events of a 1987 botched kidnapping which, in the film, is orchestrated by one Jerry Lundegaard (William H. Macy), a nervous car salesman whose debts have finally caught up with him. His plan: hire two men to kidnap his grating wife and then dupe his father-in-law out of the ransom money, which will later be split between he and the kidnappers (who are played by Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare). But what do you do when your hired assailants are two bumblings idiots from the nothern reaches of North Dakota, where phrases of choice range from "You're darn tootin'" to "Yah!"? And once blood is involved, you can forget about smooth transactions. ***

Acting as both a comedy of errors and a thriller with some heightened moments of violence and bloodshed, "Fargo" is a movie that both delights and disappoints, mainly because it bears that same Coen flaw that has become almost impossible to ignore when watching their films. Sure, their movies look good visually, and this one makes terrific use of an empty setting that sets a mildly ominous tone, but what about the characters? Are they really as intriguing as they could have been? Lundegaard strikes a nerve here and there once things really begin to go downhill, while local pregnant police chief Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand) is in cheeky good humor even as she witnesses a most gruesome means of body disposal in the film's finale. But despite the fact that everyone is portrayed here with very fine performances from the cast, they are little more than mere caricatures, the fruit of the Coens' insatiable lust for all things quirky and over-imagined. "Fargo" works as a number of things, both as a thriller and in certain moments, a comedy, but then so did "Miller's Crossing," and I didn't care much about the people of that piece, either.

Although the transfer on this new special edition exhibits a slightly better appearance than the previous DVD from MGM, there's not much of a difference between the two, and many of the same flaws are still apparent. Measured at 1.85:1, the image benefits from good color saturation levels and clear images brought out by sharp edges that pay the price with an extensive amount of enhancement halos that become very bothersome in places. Contrast is good and shadow detail is nicely rendered, but the source print too often looks shabby, riddled with extensive film grain and some speckle and scratches. Overall it will please, but this is probably not the definitive version of "Fargo" that its followers were hoping for. ***

The sound is mastered in Dolby Digital 5.1, and again, while there are some good factors about the track, it's simply not up to par with others of its ilk and breed. Dialogue sounds natural for the most part, although the overall track itself is very front-heavy and leaves little room for any measure of ambiance, especially where the score is concerned. Surround engagement is minimal if at all present, and the .1 LFE is practically lifeless, though unneeded, throughout. --