Fargo

I'm a Coen brothers fan and Fargo is generally regarded as their masterpiece, so I thought I'd enjoy it much more than I actually did. It's a quiet, simple film about kidnapping, parking lots and woodchippers with (as per usual in a Coen brothers movie) has a great script and great dialogue. All of the actors are perfect in their roles - especially Coen regulars Buscemi and McDormand. Macy, though, really blew me away. He received an Oscar nomination for this role, and how Cuba Gooding Jr. (for Jerry Maguire) managed to beat him out is beyond me. However, I think it might have been the very subtlety of the movie that threw me off. I plan to watch it again in the future, as I have a feeling it'll be one of those flicks that grows on me. My grade: B

Synopsis: Jerry Lundegaard is in a financial jam and, out of desperation, comes up with a plan to hire someone to kidnap his wife and demand ransom from her wealthy father, to be secretly split between Jerry and the perpetrators. Jerry, who is not the most astute of individuals, hires a couple of real losers from the frozen northern reaches of Fargo, North Dakota for the job. Then things begin to slip from bad to worse as Jerry helplessly watches on. (via Imdb)

Directors and Writers: Joel and Ethan Coen (The Big Lebowski)
Stars: William H. Macy (Magnolia), Steve Buscemi (Reservoir Dogs), Frances McDormand (Almost Famous), Peter Stormare (Armageddon), Harve Presnell (Face/Off), John Carroll Lynch ("The Drew Carey Show"), Steve Park

Useless Trivia: William H. Macy begged the Coens for the role of Jerry. When they didn't get back to him, he flew to New York and told them "I'm very, very worried that you are going to screw up this movie by giving this role to somebody else. It's my role, and I'll shoot your dogs if you don't give it to me."