Fargo (1996): More Questions! More Thoughts!
Marge Gunderson, superhero?
Chasers
Friends, January is sneaking away from us. We have one more entry next week in the “Oscar Drama” category. Then, February heralds other types of films, all touching on “Love and Hate and Everything In-Between.”
You know what else February heralds for anyone like me beleaguered by cold, short days and bare trees? More sunlight, just a bit, day by day. By the end of the month emerge the tiniest, earliest, most ambitious of buds, if you know where to look.
Anyway, hello, welcome, and thank you for stopping by. For new visitors, here’s what this situation is all about:
With Savor the View, we’ll watch, think, and talk about movies and the things that matter. A warm welcome and thanks to our regular crew!
Each Monday, I share brief, spoiler-free remarks and questions to frame viewing a movie on our own.
Each Thursday, I share post-viewing questions to poke at the issues, ideas, quandaries, inspirations...whatever...that movie might have summoned (spoilers, ahoy!).
General thoughts?
The universal/general
The Midwestern setting is quite specific. But might that specific setting suggest anything more general? What could be the relationship between the particular and the universal?
These next questions intentionally channel those of Pulp Fiction, which we watched last week. Consider how the two movies compare along these issues.
In Fargo, is there such a thing as “right and wrong?” If so, what differentiates the two? If not, do any other principles guide how characters decide to act?
Are there heroes and villains? If so, how do you know which is which? Or do these categories not matter here?
Does this movie’s world have a sense of justice? What about revenge? Or maybe just consequences, of some kind, for a character’s actions?
How does this movie understand love, desire, friendship, duty, loyalty? What is valuable?
The specific/unique
Why is this movie set in the Midwest – in winter, no less? Does this strike you as unusual or uninteresting?
What do you think of Marge Gunderson? Why is she the main character? What do you think of the other characters? Are they one-dimensional or multi-dimensional? Does it matter to this film or to you?
The viewer is always present
Why do you think the film claims to be a “true story?” Does that initial claim – and the realization that it isn’t in fact true – do anything for your understanding of the movie? Even if the story itself isn’t, strictly speaking, true, are there still elements of truth in the story?
How do you compare Fargo with any other criminal-case stories you might have followed – whether in the news or through a “true crime” broadcast of some kind?
How do you compare Fargo with Pulp Fiction?
Worthwhile Reads
https://www.vox.com/2016/3/8/11177872/fargo-movie-mike-yanagita-anniversary
https://www.sensesofcinema.com/2017/cteq/fargo/
Next Week’s Movie?
Michael Clayton (2007)
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