Fargo (1996)

 Fargo (1996)

Starring- William H Macy, Steve Buscemi, Frances McDormand, Peter Stormare and Kristin Rudrud. 

The tagline to Fargo shouts, ‘There won’t be a better movie this year!’ A quote that I fully agree with on many levels despite the fact that 1996 spawned Independence Day, The English Patient, Scream and Jerry Maguire. However, in my humble opinion, Fargo trumps all of these. There is a fantastic storyline heightened with tension as the film progresses, brilliant acting and an amazing set- the bleak, misty, snowy backwaters of Minnesota provide the perfect backdrop for this blood soaked crime thriller. 

Put simply, Jerry Lundegard (Macy) is in way above his head in an unexplained financial problem. As panic sets in, he decides to extort the money he needs from his wealthy father in law, who just also happens to be his boss. Jerry’s inept criminal plan, to hire two crooks to kidnap his own wife and make his father in law cough up to the tune of one million dollars, rapidly begins falls apart due to the bungling of his hired criminals. 

The first thing that struck me about Fargo were the sets and locations. I absolutely love the backwaters of the USA and would love to discover them for myself one day. Naturally then I am instantly drawn to them. In Fargo they take these backwaters and mystify them by filming the vast open bleakness of life in the cold and snow of Minnesota. The murky mist adds to the tension and creates a sense of foreboding throughout the film. 

As far as cinematic performances go, you’d have to dig deep to emulate William H Macy in his finest role. He plays a man sinking into the abyss of financial problems so well you can feel the desperation oozing out of him and being written across his face. To play such a pathetic worm like character so convincingly was a treat to see. Jerry swirls uncontrollably on a lilo of debt, desperately trying to lever money from his wealthy father in law to no avail. Whatever his debt is, I personally felt sorry for Jerry as he had no support from his father in law at all and probably felt the criminal route was the only one open to him. The rage we see in Jerry’s lying eyes is expertly portrayed by Macy. 

The polar opposite to Jerry is Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand) who is a chirpy yet tenacious and diligent police officer whose hard work brings the case to a close. I’d never seen McDormand in anything else prior to Fargo so I am currently trying desperately to seek out her work. 

This was my second viewing of Fargo and it got even better the second time. The characters are multi faceted and multi layered and played brilliantly. I urge you to watch this film- the best film of 1996. Also before I go do check out the brooding psychopath played by Peter Stormare and also Steve Buscemi who plays the second crook- both brilliant in this film. 

Dr No (1962)

Dr No

Starring- Sean Connery, Ursula Andress, Bernard Lee and Joseph Wiseman

Directed by- Terence Young 

I was innocently flicking through the endless channels on an idle Sunday afternoon recently when I happened upon this absolute gem of a movie. It was the perfect tonic to combat the dreary drizzle sliding its way down my front room window. April showers ain’t got nothing on you Sean Connery. 

Dr No needs no introduction. See what I did there? Nevermind. Dr No, although not the first Bond book ever written it is the birth of the Bond franchise (yuk horrible word- what’s wrong with the word ‘series?’) and my favourite version. 

Our hero has been stationed in Jamaica, a beautiful sun blessed location that would set the precedent for future Bond films. James Bond battles against scientific genius Dr No who is hell bent upon kiboshing the US Space program. As the clock begins to tick, 007 meets the ravishing Ursula Andress and the pair confront the evil megalomaniac in his enormous lair. 

Does this plot line sound familiar? You’d be forgiven for assuming every Bond film was at least loosely based on this concept- why break a winning formula?! 

All of the traits of future Bond films are present. The gorgeous girls, the stunning, exotic locations, amazing cars (Dr No sees Connery driving a Sunbeam Alpine) and a cracking musical score- not to mention megalomaniacal villains obsessed with world domination. 

However, that said, there are differences between Dr No and the rest of the 007 series. Let’s begin with how Bond is portrayed. We all know how Bond developed as the series progressed. Not necessarily all the changes were good. I particularly felt sorry for Roger Moore as the character became more of a comic figure as Moore’s wrinkles deepened. No, in Dr No, Sean Connery plays Bond as a gristled, battle hardened if psychotic, killer. Yes- a cold blooded killer. The Dr No version of Bond is the closest we see to the Bond of Ian Fleming’s books than at any other time. It was a trait that not everyone took to initially- the killing of Professor Dent in cold blood caused no less than public outcry back in 1962. This was a different, sheltered world to ours.

The second way in which Dr No is different to the rest of the Bond series is the lack of gadgets. The nearest we get is a mere Geiger counter. Hardly machine guns popping out from the side of a silver Aston Martin but at least it was a start. This again shows how Dr No was closer to the true version of Bond written in the books. 

James Bond was incredibly successful. It offered an escape from people’s dreary British lives as they jumped at the chance of two hours’ worth of escapism. It is debatable as to whether Bond is still acceptable in our post Me Too modern world. I’m not sure that a womanising, murdering psychopath quite fits with our politically correct worldview. Still, it was an enjoyable blast from the past on a dreary, rain soaked Sunday afternoon.