Fargo (1996)
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A desperate car salesman's botched kidnapping plot spirals into a violent and chaotic series of events across the snowy Midwest.
The story
In 1987, Jerry Lundegaard, a desperate car dealership manager, hires two dimwitted criminals to kidnap his wife, believing he can extort a large ransom from his wealthy father-in-law. However, the plan quickly spirals out of control when the kidnappers encounter a state trooper, leading to a series of violent escalations. While the criminals navigate a chaotic situation involving a large sum of money, a pregnant police chief, Marge Gunderson, begins investigating the crime scene. As the two paths of the kidnappers and the law converge in the snowy landscape of the Midwest, the consequences of Jerry's greed begin to unfold.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1987, Jerry Lundegaard, a car salesman, hires Gaear and Carl to kidnap his wife, Jean, to extort a ransom from his father-in-law, Wade. The plan goes awry when the kidnappers are stopped by a state trooper; Gaear kills the officer and two witnesses. Meanwhile, Marge Gunderson, a pregnant police chief, investigates the murders. The situation becomes increasingly chaotic as Jerry's lies about the ransom amount are exposed, and the kidnappers find themselves in a deadly standoff with Wade. After a series of violent encounters, Carl discovers the ransom is much larger than expected and hides the excess in the snow. At a remote cabin, Gaear kills Carl after a dispute over a car. Marge eventually tracks the kidnappers to the cabin, where she finds Gaear and arrests him. Simultaneously, Jerry is apprehended by state troopers in North Dakota. The film concludes with Marge and her husband, Norm, preparing for the birth of their child.
- First release year
- 1996
- Runtime (minutes)
- 98
- Production countries
- United States; United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Joel Coen
- Writers
- Ethan Coen · writer; Joel Coen · writer
- Cast and characters
- Frances McDormand · Marge Gunderson; William H. Macy · Jerry; Steve Buscemi · Carl; Harve Presnell · Shep; Peter Stormare · Gaear
- Genres
- black comedy; crime; comedy-drama
- Themes
- consequences of greed; moral ambiguity
- Tone and mood
- darkly funny; quirky
- Setting
- The Midwest (Minnesota and North Dakota) in 1987.
- Premise and plot tags
- crime; kidnapping; black comedy
- Reception
- The film was a critical and commercial success, earning particular acclaim for the Coens' screenplay and direction and the performances of McDormand, Macy and Buscemi.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 95% · scale: percentage · review count: 111; Metacritic · score: 88 · scale: 100 · review count: 26
- Awards and nominations
- Prix De La Mise En Scène · Best Director · win; Academy Award · Best Actress · win; Academy Award · Best Original Screenplay · win; Academy Award · Best Picture · nomination; Academy Award · Best Director · nomination; Academy Award · Best Supporting Actor · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry in 2006.; The film was included in the American Film Institute's list of the 100 greatest American films in 1998.; The film's script was ranked as the 32nd greatest ever by the Writers Guild of America in 2006.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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