A bleak thriller with some dark laughs

Rating: 10/10 (20 September 2012)

Set in the bleak snow covered country side of the American Midwest car dealer Jerry Lundegaard has hit upon a scam to fun a business venture; he pays a couple of crooks, Carl and Gaear, to kidnap his wife; then when her wealthy father pays the ransom they will divide it between them; he also provides them with a new car. The kidnap goes ahead as planned but as the kidnappers drive through Brainerd they are pulled over by a state trooper; Carl tries to talk his way out of the ticket but Gaear pulls out a gun and kills to policeman; then when Carl is disposing of the body Gaear gives chase to a car that drives past the scene and shoots its too occupants. Local police chief, the heavily pregnant Marge Gunderson is called out and sets about investigating the brutal triple murder. It isn't long before Jerry's plan starts to unwind; the kidnappers start demanding all the ransom, Jerry's father in law insists that he will deliver the money and Marge starts quizzing him about the criminal's car.
This Cohen brothers' film is a great thriller with a great cast including Frances McDormand, William H Macy and Steve Buscemi as Marge, Jerry and Carl. There are some laughs to be had and these serve to make the violent moments all the more shocking. The bleakness of the crime is brilliantly mirrored by the bleakness of the landscape; flat, snow covered and so overcast they the horizon in frequently invisible... it makes one cold just to look at it! The characters are interesting; Jerry is basically a loser, Carl is somewhat overcome by the events and gets more violent as things spiral out of control, Gaear hardly says a word but acts as though the events are the sort of thing that happen every day and I don't recall seeing a film where the leading investigator was a pregnant woman! This is definitely not a film for younger viewers but I heartily recommend it to any adult looking for a great drama that is a little different.