1. Fargo (1995) (Dir. Joel & Ethan Coen)
For all its willing to be idiosyncratic, quirky and utterly Coen, Fargo remains the two-headed director’s most plainly appealing motion picture, a towering achievement in both creative writing, direction, acting and compostion. A crime escapade in its most simple description, Fargo tells the story of a loser-ish car salesman who hires two dumb thugs to kidnap his wife so that her rich father will pay a ransom (and they can each split the dough). Things don’t go as planned, of course, and the Coens render their story as a police investigation overseen by one pregnant Marge Gunderson, impeccably played with charm and gusto by Frances McDormand.
Fargo is strange and odd, brilliantly-acted, drenched in atmosphere, engrossing and baffling: in other words, it’s everything a great film should be. The twists keep on coming as the deceivingly simple story diverts into avenues you never saw approaching. For all its irony and bleakness, there is love here too, as Marge sadly addresses a criminal as the film draws to a close, and in the scenes she shares with husband Norm. When the film does end, you feel as if you’ve actually visited Fargo and spent quality time with some of its inhabitants – surely the best compliment one could possibly pay to a movie that truly opens itself up and invites you into its world.
Last time: We looked at The Noughties (the 2000’s), and you can read our Best Films of the Noughties list here.
Next time: The Eighties get our top ten film treatment, stay tuned.
Do you agree with our choices for the ten best films of the 90’s? Let us know in the comments below.