Fargo: A Real Dual World

Darius 2022-04-23 07:01:01

Before watching this movie, my expectations were very low. A long time ago, there was a special program introducing the Coen brothers in the tenth screening room, and "Frozen" was the key unit. I remember watching it very carefully at the time, so although it has been a long time, I still don't have a clear understanding of the outline of the plot. But after watching it, I found that I was completely convinced by this movie. Even if I watched it a second time, a third time, it was still a really good movie for me. I appreciate this film for two reasons, the first because of the unparalleled authenticity of its details, and the second because of the sheer dualism that pervades the film.

Say the first one first. I just mentioned that I already have a certain understanding of the plot before, so the plot of the film will obviously not be the factor that attracts me. Having said that, the plot of the film itself is not so twisty (compared to some films in the same genre). I saw that many people's comments on the plot of this movie are just three words - boiled water. I would also like to add a word, or absurd. Absurd and false have always been two completely different adjectives, one can be said to be a positive one and the other a derogatory one. No one would say that Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot" was fake, and few would say that parts of the news feed were absurd. As far as I'm concerned, I find the film more or less absurd. But of course not as absurd as glass onions falling from the sky when people walk down the street.

Within reason, I think the Coen brothers handled it perfectly. They deliberately avoided some unmanageable details to allow the film to unfold smoothly. The story setting of the film itself is absurd. Jerry, who has a stable job, hires outlaws to kidnap his wife because he has no money to make bigger investments. The father-in-law Wade, who completely distrusted his son-in-law, stubbornly asked himself to send money in the past regardless of his daughter's life and death caused a tragedy; in addition, the pregnant female police officer had to go out to investigate the murder in person (I think this setting A bit of No Country for Old Men). The skinny robber Carl saw that Jerry's father-in-law was sending money and shot him dead. The more cold-blooded robber, Gaear, killed the hostage because he felt loud, and was offended by killing his accomplice and throwing his body into a wood chipper. All the key parts of the film are because people are completely and absolutely irrational, showing something more instinctive than animality, even anti-instinct. During these episodes and episodes, I smelled a rust-smelling air that filled the ice and snow, which was suffocatingly dry and cold. Rather than rationality and cold-hearted violence focused on Gaear, the robber, who is less talkative, cruel, and decisive, making people shudder. He's more brutal than the cold-blooded serial killer in No Country For Old Men. The latter follows certain rules, at least to some extent, and for Gaear, there are no rules in the world. For their own comfort, for profit, to vent their anger, everything can be done. Killing people is a trivial matter for him.

Maybe swap the protagonists for anyone in the audience and these events won't break out. But these cruel and
no more cruel events did happen, and after careful scrutiny, you will find that there is a reason for it. There is a natural rationality hidden in the seemingly absurd plot. Because all plots can stand up to scrutiny, the only thing that cannot stand up to scrutiny is the behavior of people themselves. But who can say how to scrutinize the behavior of "people", when we see all kinds of criminal cases in the social news column of the website day after day?

So why say it's real? It is naturally true. At the beginning of the film, it was said that the film is completely based on a true story, but the names of the characters have been modified. It can be seen that such cruel events take place in real life. Indeed, it might not have been that hard for the Coen brothers to make a movie good. They can add a lot of gimmicks, they can make the plot twist and turn a little bit, and they can have a gunfight or even a fight between the policewoman and the gangster. But they didn't. Why? Because this movie needs to be real. It can be seen that the director is restraining, he did not maximize cruelty, but he did it in a real context. They're not making Chainsaw, or the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Silence of the Lambs, or something like that, I think they're making a serious film that reflects reality. It's like a documentary in a way. In addition, many details in the film are also very close to reality (at least in my perception). Such as dialects, the vague stuttering and repetition that can be seen everywhere in reality - instead of the smooth lines that are common in movies, the details and dialogues that are natural in the lives of the policewoman and her husband - such as the policewoman who came back to say the car after leaving the house Unable to start asking for help from my husband (it's still a long shot), these unrelated scenes can be seen everywhere in ordinary life, but they are rarely seen in movies, especially in Hollywood genre movies. All in all, the director was trying to give us a real and absurd movie, and at this point, I think they did it, and they did it pretty well.

Another point, the idea of ​​dualism in the film.
I don't know what the director thought, but I saw a strong dualistic thinking in the film. In general, the film has two worlds, one is the world of the bad guys, and the other is the world of the good guys.
In the world of bad guys, there are no bottom lines, no rules, only cold blood and violence, and life is not worthy of mercy in this world. In the world of good people, kind couples live innocently and carefree - no negative effects of the case can be seen in the film being brought into the family by the pregnant policewoman.

The madness began when the police were killed on the icy road. The line of gangsters is full of absurdity and cruelty, and people die one after another. In the beginning, the two gangsters murdered for self-protection, but later it turned into needless cruelty. The reasons for people's death became less and less worth mentioning, and the most brutal part of human nature was exposed in front of the camera step by step. And this, in the classic scene that many viewers will remember - the numb-faced Gaear tossing the corpse of his companion into the wood chipper, making the surrounding snow covered with meat sauce, reached its peak.
Later in the police car, the female police officer used her method to question the robber in a puzzled way. Is it worth it? The robber who was locked behind still had a frosty face, turned his face numbly, and did not express. He didn't have any guilt, remorse, or even regret.

On the other hand, the life of the pregnant policewoman and her husband is very peaceful. They sat in bed every night watching documentaries on TV until they fell asleep. The husband is a simple artist. As can be seen, he seems to have a hard time earning an income. But he doesn't show the kind of greed that the protagonist Jerry has. In the morning, he fry eggs for his wife who attends work, and still draws tirelessly. His wife also loves him carefree and does not dislike him for not having a stable job at all. From their lives, there is not even a trace of hostility, and all around them is a positive and warm atmosphere.

I guess that the director is trying to use this expression to show two completely different sides of life. We see crimes on the Internet in newspapers, or hearsay. But in reality, there are very few traces of crime in our lives. Few of our houses have been demolished (that’s just a few), and almost none of us have been sent to labor camps (that’s even less). As for inter-provincial pursuits and the like, we shouldn’t be concerned at all. Perhaps it can be said that we live on the positive side of the world, we obey the law, participate in maintaining order, and do not deal with underworld forces, so naturally we can live happily and carefree. However, there is still a dark side to the world. On that side, it is full of cold-blooded brutality and irregular rampages. Human life is like a mustard. Maybe we can know the stories between the drug dealers and the armed police in the Golden Triangle, or the stories of the gangsters, and there is no doubt that we know the stories of forced demolitions, but most of us can't touch them. This reminds me of an album by Pink Floyd, The Dark Side of the Moon.
The main axis of the film is dark. But beyond the main axis there is warmth and beauty. The director wants us to regain our enthusiasm for the world, full of an artist's enthusiasm. In a way, I think they want us to keep believing that there is still light in this world (despite so much darkness). However, it is worth pondering that, many years later, this point expressed in the Coen brothers' No Country for Old Men has undergone a fundamental change. In the world of "No Country for Old Men", there are no so-called good people and bad people. Everyone is crazy for the pursuit of profit, and the police are full of helplessness in this world, not the naivety and integrity in "Frozen". Among a group of "good guys and bad guys" chasing wealth, the cruelest cold-blooded serial killer in No Country for Old Men is the most disciplined. At least he'll flip a coin before killing you and decide your life or death. In that world, good and evil are chaotic. The story told by the old policeman played by Tommy Lee Jones at the end conveys his deep helplessness. This also allows us to see some subtle changes in the thinking of the Coen brothers as they grow up - they no longer advocate that there is still a good side of the world, because even the children's final performance is not so simple. They became pessimistic.

That last scene in Fargo is really moving—simply true.
The husband told his wife that my painting was adopted by the stamp. There was no ecstasy and excitement. The wife happily encouraged her husband, saying it was great. The husband smiled slightly and said, "It's only three cents. Few people use three cent stamps anymore." His wife reassured him that, of course, someone will use it, and when someone collects the postage, it will be used. Husband asked, is it? Wife says it happens when people have too many old stamps. The husband smiled nonchalantly, yes, I think so. My husband said, I love you. My wife said, I love you too. In two months, the baby will be born. The two snuggled together, watched TV, and fell asleep hugging each other. So simple, yet so beautiful.
That is hope.

Maybe just three cents of hope, but hope is always good. In the face of this three-cent hope, that million-dollar delusion seems so filthy and embarrassing. I think for the young me, I prefer the hope of the three-cent stamp in "Frozen" compared to the helplessness and despair in "No Country for Old Men" even the law enforcement officers sigh. Not why, because at least I still believe in the existence of beauty.

View more about Fargo reviews

Extended Reading
  • Wilbert 2022-03-23 09:01:03

    The texture of life is embedded in the storytelling.

  • Jolie 2022-03-25 09:01:03

    The TV series fargo can be regarded as a sequel to the movie version decades later, and two periods of time and space are connected by the buried cash box. The structure is almost similar, and the spiritual temperament is very similar. The movie version is more concise, and the TV series version of fargo with expanded plot and characters is more enjoyable.

Fargo quotes

  • Jerry Lundegaard: I'm in a bit of trouble...

    Carl Showalter: What kind of trouble are you in, Jerry?

    Jerry Lundegaard: Well, that's, that's... I'm not gonna go into, inta... see, I just need money.

  • Jerry Lundegaard: Well, heck! If you wanna... If you wanna play games here, I'm working with ya on this thing here, but... Okay!

    [slams table as he stands up]

    Jerry Lundegaard: I'll do a damn lot count!

    Marge Gunderson: Sir, right now?

    Jerry Lundegaard: Yeah! Right now. You're darn tootin'! If it's so damned important to ya!

    Marge Gunderson: Well, I'm sorry, sir.

    Jerry Lundegaard: Ah, what the Christ!