Fargo (1996)

Directed by Joel Coen. Starring William H. Macy, Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare, Harve Presnell, John Carroll Lynch, Kristin Rudrüd, Steve Park, Steve Reevis. [R]

A disarming true original from the Coen brothers: a noir-ish crime picture laced with a heavy dose of offbeat dark humor where nervous, amoral car salesman Macy hires a couple of goons (Buscemi, Stormare) to kidnap his wife so his father-in-law (Presnell) will pay the ransom and he can pocket the lion’s share; the operation doesn’t quite go according to plan, though, which puts pregnant police chief McDormand on their trail, dontcha know. Joel and Ethan Coen’s Oscar-winning script is whip-smart, witty, and brimming with surprises, populating the story with eccentric locals played on just the right side of caricature, and sudden bursts of grisly violence (good luck ever looking at a wood chipper the same way again). Splendidly performed by all principals, with McDormand also picking up an Academy Award for her near-iconic portrayal of slow but steady “Margie.” Roger Deakins’ photography, as much a character as any Midwesterner in sight, evocatively captures the frigid reaches of Minnesota winter. Inspired a spiritual successor television series, plus a movie based on the urban legend of the buried ransom money seen in the film (Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter).

95/100