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Fargo (film)
Fargo movieposter
Directed by Joel Coen
Written by Ethan Coen
Produced by Joel Coen
Ethan Coen
Starring Frances McDormand
William H. Macy
Steve Buscemi
Harve Presnell
Peter Stormare
Music by Carter Burwell
Cinematography Roger Deakins
Editing by Roderick Jaynes
Studio PolyGram Filmed Entertainment
Working Title Films
Distributed by Gramercy Pictures
Release date March 8, 1996
Running time 98 minutes
Budget $7,000,000
Box office $60,611,975

Fargo is a 1996 Oscar-winning American crime drama film produced, directed, written, and edited by brothers Joel and Ethan Coen. It is the original film that inspired the 2014 TV adaptation of the same name in which the Coens serve as executive producers.

Opening text[]

THIS IS A TRUE STORY.

The events depicted in this film
took place in Minnesota in 1987.

At the request of the survivors,
the names have been changed.

Out of respect for the dead,
the rest has been told exactly
as it occurred.

Plot[]

In 1987, pregnant chief of police Marge Gunderson investigates a series of homicides near Brainerd, Minnesota. Meanwhile, Jerry Lundegaard, a struggling car salesman in financial debt, hires two criminals to kidnap his wife. Jerry's inept crime falls apart due to his and his henchmen's bungling and the persistent police work of Marge.

Cast[]

Trivia[]

  • The film is, in fact, not based on a true story.
  • None of the film was shot in, or near, Fargo, North Dakota.
  • The hockey game that Wade was watching on television was between the Minnesota Golden Gophers and the Wisconsin Badgers. The game would have been played sometime between 1984 and 1988, as there is a goal scored by Wisconsin forward Paul Ranheim, who played for Wisconsin during those years.
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