Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Fargo: Season 2

 

The second season of Fargo, like the first (and the movie) is, despite the tag at the beginning of the episodes, a totally made-up story. It is actually a prequel to the season one story, telling the events that Lou Solverson (played by Keith Carradine in season one, and Patrick Wilson in season two) related during one of the scenes in season one, in which he discussed an old case that was as crazy as what was playing out. The season starts off with a member of the Gerhardt crime family (Rye, played by Kieran Culkin) based in Fargo, North Dakota trying to extort a judge in a diner in Luverne, Minnesota (which is nowhere near Fargo). Things get murdery (as they do in the Fargo storylines), and Rye ends up being hit by a car driven by Kirsten Dunst's character, Peggy Blumquist. Things go off the rails from there as the Gerhardts, lead by Jean Smart's character Floyd Gerhardt, try to figure out what happened to Rye, and head off members of the Kansas City mob who are trying to take over in Fargo. And Lou, ends up in the middle of everything.

The show has a great guest and recurring cast, including Ted Danson, Jeffrey Donovan (from Burn Notice), Zahn McClarnon who plays a Native American Hitman for the Gerhardts, Jesse Plemons (from Breaking Bad), Bokeem Woodbine, Brad Garrett, Nick Offerman, Rachel Keller, Michael Hogan (from Battlestar), and more, and Bruce Campbell. We also do get cameos from some of the season one actors.

For those who get the Blu-Ray set, the extras include five featurettes; titled "Lou on Lou: A Conversation with Patrick Wilson, Keith Carradine, and Noah Hawley", "Waffles and Bullet Holes: A Return to Sioux Falls", "The Films of Ronald Reagan: Extended Fargo cut", "The True History of Crime in the Midwest", and "Skip Sprang TV Commercial". The commercial is the shortest of them (just under a minute), and the Waffles and Bullet Holes featurette is the longest at just under 45 minutes. So, there is a decent amount for those who like watching the extras.

Overall, the show is good. It does get a bit weird at times, even introducing the hint of aliens. But, it is a good mix of drama and very dry, dark, humor. There is some sexual content and a lot of violence, so like season one, it is not family-friendly. That said, the acting is great and the writing is very good. So, if you were a fan of season one, this is definitely worth watching.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Fargo: Season 1

 

This is a series that is modeled after, and loosely, spun off of, the movie of the same name. There is actually a tie-in to the movie that is involved in one of the plot lines. As with the movie, this is a very untrue story set mostly in MN, in the towns of Bemidji and Duluth. It stars Martin Freeman (from the series Sherlock and The Hobbit movies) as Lester Nygaard, and Billy Bob Thornton as Lorne Malvo, a hitman who crosses paths with Lester in a hospital after Lester is decked by his high-school bully, Sam Hess. Malvo suggests that the bully should be killed, which Lester neither endorses nor rejects, and because Lester does not say no, Malvo ends up killing the bully which leads to an investigation of Lester, and things go downhill from there. Hess was loosely mob-connected, and the mob (out of Fargo) ends up trying to find out what happened to him, which also causes problems for Lester. The series also stars Allison Tolman as Deputy Molly Solverson, a police deputy from Bemidji, who is the only competent officer in the department, and Colin Hanks as Officer Gus Grimly, an officer from Duluth who has a run-in with Malvo. There are several recognizable stars among the supporting cast including Bob Odenkirk, Kate Walsh, Joey King, Oliver Platt, Keegan-Michael Key, Jordan Peele, Stephen Root, and Keith Carradine.

For those who get the Blu-Ray, the extras include audio commentaries on three episodes which include the showrunner Noah Hawley and rotating members of the cast, a two-part making-of documentary, a discussion with Hawley and the cast members about creating the show, a feature about the character of Malvo, and deleted scenes. Some of the sets also come with a Fargo-themed beanie.

Overall, the series is great. It tells one long story and is more like a 10-hour movie than it is a TV show. There is a lot of violence and some sexual content, so it is definitely not family-friendly. Freeman is wonderful as Lester who is kind of like William H. Macy's character in the movie, but definitely, not a carbon copy, and Billy Bob Thornton dominates every scene he is in. It is a bit hilarious for those of us who actually live in MN to see what cities they decided to set the show in. As anyone who lives here knows, Bemidji and Duluth are nowhere near each other and there is no way that a quick trip can be made between the two cities, especially in the winter. And, of course, the show does do the very over-the-top accents just like the movie did. It is a great crime drama that has a similar tone to the movie but is definitely its own story and not just a remake or reboot of the movie. It is definitely worth checking out.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Fargo (Remastered Edition)

 

Fargo is an iconic movie from 1996 that is a blend of drama and comedy. The plot is fairly simple. A rather pathetic used car salesman in Minneapolis named Jerry Lundegaard (played by the great William H. Macy, who was probably at the height of his fame due to his recurring role on ER) hires a couple of hitmen out of Fargo North Dakota named Showalter (played by Steve Buscemi) and Grimsrud (played by Peter Stormare) to kidnap his wife Jean (played by Kristin Rudrud) in order to get ransom money from his wealthy father-in-law that he will split with the kidnappers. Of course, things go pear-shaped as they are transporting Jean from Minneapolis to a cabin in Moose Lake. The focus of the investigation by Marge Gunderson, an officer in the Brainerd police department, shifts to Jerry who acts more and more squirrely and guilty as the case unfolds.

For those who get the restored Blu-Ray, the movie looks and sounds very good in HD. I would not say that it got as good a restoration as some of the older movies that are being released on Blu-Ray (and especially on 4k now) are getting, but it is improved over the original DVD release. The extras are all carried over from the Blu-Ray release. They include a commentary track on the movie by the cinematographer, a 27-minute making-of documentary, a trivia track, an article about the movie, tv spots, a photo gallery, and the trailer.

The movie gained notoriety for the over-the-top accents used to depict how people in MN and ND talk. While you can definitely hear some of that accent in people, especially people in their 80s and up, it is definitely not as pronounced as they make it seem. But, for those of us who live in this region (who do not get offended by the parody), it makes it even funnier. The story is not really true, despite the opening title card, and while the cities mentioned in the movie are real, the Cohen brothers clearly did not consult a map when coming up with the cities to set the movie in as Brainerd is about 80 miles on the opposite side of MN from Moose Lake and nobody going from Minneapolis to Moose Lake would go anywhere near Brainerd. That said, it is very well acted with Macy and McDormand being the standouts, but really all of the actors doing a great job. Certainly, the Cohen brother's movies never appeal to everyone, but I think this is definitely one of their best. It is a very dark dramedy and can be bloody in parts. But, if you are in the mood for a somewhat offbeat movie (and are one of the handful reading this who has not seen the movie yet) it is definitely worth checking out.