Fargo

This was a weird combination of hatred and love I had for this movie. On one hand its a great crime thriller with a spot of dark humor, and a unique style that only the Coen brothers can bring.

On the other hand, that fucking accent!

Now I'm from Minnesota. So are the Coen brothers. And some of the mannerisms displayed in this movie are spot on. The clip above was really funny when I watched it, not because of the accent but because of the mannerisms. There is that Minnesota nice that, while a little bit exaggerated, is not far off. Furthermore the entire environment was just a little too real at times. The furniture was a huge thing because while times have changed since 1996, my grandparents have furniture similar to that of the Lundegaard's house. But the accent was the part that annoyed me the most.

There are people who speak with that accent, but they're far and in between. Maybe its a self hatred thing but the fact almost everyone had that accent was annoying as hell... because not everyone has that accent. Especially in the Twin Cities people are pretty good at hiding that accent. Now in the more rural parts, like Brainerd, I can totally understand that. But the entire movie gave off a kind of Northern country bumpkin feel to Minnesota which kind of bothered me. I'll give the movie credit, it was made in 1996 and the 80's and 90's were not good to Minnesota especially. But there are parts of Minnesota not represented in Fargo that make it a really great state.

Now I may be over reacting. It is a dark comedy and kind of a satire of the mannerisms that Minnesota can be made fun of for, and what kind of person would I be if I can't make fun of myself every once in a while. The part that bothers me is that not everyone got the comedy aspect to it. Not too many movies are filmed in Minnesota and this is the most popular one. For a long time, it kind of ruined the image of Minnesota.

I guess the good outcome that eventually happened was we had Sarah Palin come and she definitely does have that accent. But she's from Alaska so it kind of took that stigma away from Minnesota.

So... I guess thank you Sarah Palin? Those are hard words to say.

But this isn't my political blog. Besides the mannerisms and the accent, what did I think of the movie?

It was really good.

Now the Coen brothers are kind of hit or miss with me. The definitely have a distinct style that some people love and some people hate. For me, it depends on the movie. I loved it in Blood Simple, but hated it in No Country for Old Men. And with this movie, I loved it.

The movie has a solid script that is funny, its dark, its drama filled, and its filled with morally gray characters that really give the audience to relate with them even when they're doing some really slimy stuff.

The movie starts off with Jerry Lundegaard (played by William Macy) driving to Fargo North Dakota to meet up with Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare. These two are criminals who Jerry hired to kidnap his wife and hold her for ransom. He's doing this so he can get money from his father in-law and get out of unspecified trouble.

The first half hour of the movie is learning about Jerry and his life, while Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare drive to Minneapolis. It gives for a few good laughs, a relatable character in Jerry (despite being a cowardly asshole) and some really good Tarantino style dialogue between Buscemi and Stormare.

Well things go wrong and some people end up dead. I won't tell who because its worth the surprise.

Enter Marge Gunderson (played by Frances McDormand), a pregnant police officer from Brainerd looking into the murders that happen. She's your stereotypical Minnesotan (like everyone is in this movie) and I guess she's smart. I don't know, I just didn't really see her as a very definitive character. I liked her sure, but she wasn't as memorable as William Macy or Steve Buscemi. She's just kind of the detective and she has a Minnesotan accent.

The real show stealer was definitely Steve Buscemi.

Buscemi was such a character that it was hard not to love to hate him.

Those are always the best villains aren't they? The ones that are just down right nasty but at the same time good characters.

Peter Stormare was good but he doesn't do much in the movie. He just kind of stands there and looks menacing. He's more of a your run of the mill criminal. He's the real evil whereas Buscemi is more of the comedic bad guy.

I really enjoyed this movie. As much as the accents and the exaggerations of the Minnesota mannerisms may have ticked me off a little when I think about the image its portraying, it really was humorous to poke fun at a stereotype I do see every once in a while here in good o'l Minnesota.

This movie has been deemed culturally and historically accurate by the Library of Congress. And for the most part the movie really is accurate. The locations and I'll give it a good amount of the mannerisms are spot on. But some of them and that fucking accent are only representative of rural Minnesota. If the movie had only taken place in rural Minnesota I would have understood it. But it also took place in the cities. Which in my experience is a totally different environment. Its like the stereotype that everyone in Alabama is a hillbilly redneck who is racist. That stereotype doesn't apply to everyone in the South and if every movie had that representation, I'm sure someone in the South would be writing a similar review.

Now this movie was made in 1996 and I was 4. Maybe a lot has changed since, hence the world I claim I know today. I did note the 90s were not nice to Minnesota. Maybe I'm just totally off and should just embrace this movie for an accurate representation of the state I live in.

And I do. I do really enjoy this movie and some of the fun it has with the mannerisms and the quirkiness of Minnesota. The only concerns I have may be unfounded but sue me for having pride in my state.

Overall, Fargo is a really good movie. I definitely recommend it. It definitely has the style of the Coen brothers and if you're not familiar with that style, this is a good movie to start off with.

So have you seen Fargo? What did you think of it? Comment below and let me know. Am I totally off base with my criticisms of this movie? Let me know I'd be interested to hear people's thoughts on this movie.

I'll leave you with this. Since this movie does take place in Minnesota, and I am a Minnesotan, I have to leave you with a best of our great running back, Adrian Peterson. The shining beacon of hope that one day, our sportsteams will not be the worst in everything.