Fargo (1996)

Jerry Lundegaard's inept crime falls apart due to his and his henchmen's bungling and the persistent police work of the quite pregnant Marge Gunderson.

Directors:

Joel Coen, Ethan Coen (uncredited)

Writers:

Ethan Coen, Joel Coen

Stars:

William H. Macy, Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi

Top Rated Movies #176 | Won 2 Oscars. Another 81 wins & 58 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William H. Macy	...	Jerry Lundegaard
Steve Buscemi	...	Carl Showalter
Peter Stormare	...	Gaear Grimsrud
Kristin Rudrüd	...	Jean Lundegaard
Harve Presnell	...	Wade Gustafson
Tony Denman	...	Scotty Lundegaard
Gary Houston	...	Irate Customer
Sally Wingert	...	Irate Customer's Wife
Kurt Schweickhardt	...	Car Salesman
Larissa Kokernot	...	Hooker #1
Melissa Peterman	...	Hooker #2
Steve Reevis	...	Shep Proudfoot (as Steven Reevis)
Warren Keith	...	Reilly Diefenbach (voice)
Steve Edelman	...	Morning Show Host
Sharon Anderson	...	Morning Show Hostess

Storyline

Jerry works in his father-in-law's car dealership and has gotten himself in financial problems. He tries various schemes to come up with money needed for a reason that is never really explained. It has to be assumed that his huge embezzlement of money from the dealership is about to be discovered by father-in-law. When all else falls through, plans he set in motion earlier for two men to kidnap his wife for ransom to be paid by her wealthy father (who doesn't seem to have the time of day for son-in-law). From the moment of the kidnapping, things go wrong and what was supposed to be a non-violent affair turns bloody with more blood added by the minute. Jerry is upset at the bloodshed, which turns loose a pregnant sheriff from Brainerd, MN who is tenacious in attempting to solve the three murders in her jurisdiction.

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Plot Keywords:

black comedy | botched crime | neo noir | americana | tall tale | 

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Taglines:

An ordinary place, an extraordinary thriller

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, language and sexuality

Did You Know?

Trivia

Frances McDormand (Marge Gunderson) and director Joel Coen have been married since April 1st, 1984. They have one child together.

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Goofs

Marge's scarf swaps sides on her first visit to Jerry's office.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Jerry Lundegaard: I'm, uh, Jerry Lundegaard.
Carl Showalter: You're Jerry Lundegaard?
Jerry Lundegaard: Ya. Shep Proudfoot said...
Carl Showalter: Shep said you'd be here at 7:30. What gives, man?
Jerry Lundegaard: Shep said 8:30.
Carl Showalter: We've been sitting here an hour. He's
[motioning to Gaer]
Carl Showalter: peed three times already.
Jerry Lundegaard: I'm sure sorry. Shep told me 8:30. It was a mix-up, I guess.

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits list production companies, main cast, and the title. The crew is not listed until the ending credits, starting with a director credit.

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Alternate Versions

Polygram Filmed Entertainment sold most of its film library to MGM in 1999. As a result, when the video and DVD were re-issued by MGM video, the MGM lion logo was added to the beginning of the film.

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Connections

Referenced in Svengoolie: The Deadly Mantis (2008)

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Soundtracks

Big City
Written by Merle Haggard and Dean Holloway
Shade Tree Music, Inc.
Performed by Merle Haggard
Courtesy of Epic Records
By Arrangement with Sony Music Licensing

User Reviews

What a flick!

If you haven't seen this movie, do yourself a favour and see it. It is very well put together and the plot is constantly evolving into a deeper shade of creepiness. At times scary (not in the horror movie sense) and quite rich in dark humour, this is one of those movies that gives you a weird felling inside even an hour after its over. The music is quite appropriate and unlike Scarface, is timeless. The camera work is usually quite basic but whoever directed the photography had the enjoyable habit of giving us interestingly artistic segways between scenes. This is the first film so far that I've given a 10 out of 10. I was going to give it a 9, but I couldn't think of a reason to take any points from perfect.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 April 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fargo

Filming Locations:

Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, Chanhassen, Minnesota, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$730,265, 10 March 1996

Gross USA:

$24,611,975

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$60,611,975

Company Credits

Production Co:

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, Working Title Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1