A morality play

Rating: 9/10 (31 October 2001)

This is a violent movie; still I am inclined to call it a minor masterpiece. Many viewers disdain violence in movies without making any effort to distinguish the ways in which violence may figure in a story. Deplore, if you like, those movies which seek to portray violence for its own sake, or for titillation, or for money; but know that "Fargo" is not one of these. Rather it has the feel of a Medieval morality play (with a Medieval style musical score, if you needed a hint), wherein the evil-doers suffer the consequences of their actions, and those consequences occur on more levels than meet the eye.
Also, know that the criminals are presented in a very unflattering light, are seen for what they are--creepy Neanderthals. The big blond guy, Grimsrud, is sub-human. At the end, the endearing and good-hearted woman sheriff makes a statement to him (and to us) about how his evil actions, even had they succeeded, had gained him nothing of lasting value. In her soliloquy she compares blood money with the value of the joy of an innocent heart ("and it's a beautiful day"), but he doesn't even know what she is talking about. She is speaking to an empty shell--immoral behavior has left him with a soul so shrunken and shriveled that he can't comprehend or appreciate beauty on any level.
Oh, this is a little gem of a movie! Its touches of macabre humor--the not-quite-growls of the fearsome father-in-law, the sullen son's musical idol, the unedifying conversation of the killers, the bouncing pony tail on the enthusiastic young prostitute, the TV drama watched by the Neanderthal--provide just the right contrast to the violence. The cinematography and acting are uniformly wonderful. It is indeed a pity that this one lost out to the incredibly inane "English Patient" for the Oscar; it would be unbelievable if we didn't know Hollywood so well.

If you deplore wicked behavior, but enjoy wicked satire, see this movie. (But if you are an adolescent male, don't bother--this one's not for you.)
Rating: 9/10