Fargo (1996 film)
| Fargo | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Joel Coen[1][2][a] |
| Written by |
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| Produced by | Ethan Coen[1][2] |
| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Roger Deakins |
| Edited by | Roderick Jaynes[b] |
| Music by | Carter Burwell |
Production companies | Gramercy Pictures Working Title Films |
| Distributed by |
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Release dates |
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Running time | 98 minutes[3] |
| Countries | |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $7 million[5] |
| Box office | $60.6 million[5] |
Fargo is a 1996 black comedy[6][7] crime film written, directed, produced and edited by Joel and Ethan Coen. It stars Frances McDormand, William H. Macy, Steve Buscemi, Harve Presnell, and Peter Stormare. In the film, police chief Marge Gunderson (McDormand) investigates a triple homicide that takes place after car salesman Jerry Lundegaard (Macy) hires two dim-witted criminals to kidnap his wife to extort a ransom from her wealthy father.
Filmed in the United States in late 1995, Fargo premiered at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or. Joel Coen won the festival's Prix De La Mise En Scène (Best Director Award). The film was a critical and commercial success, earning particular acclaim for the Coens' direction and script and the performances of McDormand, Macy and Buscemi. Fargo received seven Oscar nominations at the 69th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actor for Macy, winning two: Best Actress for McDormand and Best Original Screenplay for the Coens.
In 1998, the American Film Institute named it one of the 100 greatest American films in history (the most recent film on the list up to that point) but it was subsequently de-listed in 2007. In 2006, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."[8][9] A Coen-produced FX television series of the same name, inspired by the film and taking place in the same fictional universe, premiered in 2014 and received widespread critical acclaim.[10]
- ^ a b c d "Fargo (1995)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012.
- ^ a b c d "Fargo". American Film Institute. Archived from the original on December 24, 2020. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
- ^ a b "Fargo". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on July 31, 2020.
- ^ a b "Fargo". Lumiere. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
- ^ a b "Fargo (1996)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on October 13, 2020.
- ^ Bradshaw, Peter (June 10, 2021). "Fargo review – Coen brothers' snowbound noir is still a work of gleaming brilliance". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved September 15, 2025.
- ^ "Siskel Film Center | Chicago's Home for Great Cinema | FARGO". www.siskelfilmcenter.org. Retrieved September 15, 2025.
- ^ "'Fargo,' 'Blazing Saddles' Added to National Film Registry". ABC News. December 27, 2006. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
National Film Registrywas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Goldberg, Lesley (January 14, 2014). "FX's 'Fargo' Cast, EPs on Film Comparisons, Anthology Format, Courting Billy Bob Thornton". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020.
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