The Southern film at the 49th parallel

Rating: Null/10 (14 January 2001)

This film typifies one of my pete peeves, but on the other end of the country. Just like most 'southern' films, with fake accents and fake body languages and fake cutesieisms, Fargo is a film about North Dakota (actually Minnesota) starring people who couldn't find Fargo on a map. True, there aren't very many Angie Dickinsons and Lawrence Welks and Roger Marises to play the convincing parts of North Dakotans. But this thing stinks of overblown accents, almost as badly as Jessica Lang (who is from Duluth!) stinking up the house in "Streetcar Named Desire". It's embarrassing to watch `regional color' films in which parts are played by actors who have never been closer to MInnesota than listeing to "Prairie Home Companion".