Everyone talks about how great McDormand and Macy are in this movie but Wade is the only actor who absolutely NAILS the Minnesota accent. He sounds legit.
The hockey game on the TV would have been played between 1984 and 1988, since they mention Wisconsin Badgers forward Paul Ranheim. The movie is supposed to be set in 1987, so that was a good job to get a clip of a Gophers game from that time.
I'm a Wisconsin alum, those are not Badger sweaters . That's the Denver Pioneers; a deeper red with gold stripes. (Upon further review it could also be Boston College, but they weren't in the WCHA so it would have been a rare match-up.) A badger sweater would have white stripes, but the stripes are closer in color to the golphers helmets than the white golpher sweater, so it doesn't look like Wisconsin.
@@Sphere723 I think it’s Wisconsin, not just with the name they mentioned, but also the white letters were coming down diagonally on the front of the jerseys which I know for certain the eagles never did, and I’m 99% sure Denver never did either, plus the red color looks right for Wisconsin.
Wade and Stan are reasonably smart. Didn't they think it was a little suspicious that the day after they decline loaning Jerry $750,000 (after all, they're not a bank), that Jerry's wife is kidnapped for a $1million ransom?
@@akovalev1999 I can't remember if Wade owned the dealership? If so, given what he thought of Jerry, I can't see why he would have put him in charge of it.
Yessssss!!!! And quite frankly, Lois is a lot like Jean. Despite having a super rich father, she married a regular person, lives in a regular home, and isn't ostentatious at all.
@@illuminotmereloaded6896 As he said those words his whole worldview crumbled. Turns out trying to be John Wayne in the shootout isn't always the best option.
@@TomEyeTheSFMguy Probably. Wade did imply that he'd provide for his daughter and grandson if anything should happen. Now with both Wade and Jean out of the picture, that money's probably gonna sit in a trust until Scotty's old enough to manage it.
Magnificent singer in both opera and musical theater! As he got older, he took off the toupee and reinvented himself as a character actor. He has great scene in “Saving Private Ryan” but indelible as Wade. Great clips.
For some reason now and not back when I first saw the movie. The scene where wade gets shot and then has that look of shock, then pulls out his gun and shots Steve in the face, is just an act of honor and courage. He loved his daughter. It takes strength to do that shit in the chest. It's a sad scene
You got that right! Working with "Fam" is so challenging. Remember Jack Twist in Brokeback Mountain when LD said "You Want Your Son To Grow Up To Be A Man Daughter". It was like he knew about Jack's Sexuality.
He was in over his head and underestimated how pissed off and frustrated Carl was at this point. He was probably used to people backing down during meetings, but it's another story on the street. Criminals do not care about how successful you were to get the money you have. They just want your money at all costs.
When I was younger I used to think Wade was reckless and foolish for overstepping his boundary and going against Carl like that. But now that I have a family of my own I probably would have done what he did to save my kid (even if it's years down the road and they're adults and I'm an old man).
I see him as more the ultimate right hand man than just a toady. I think he likes to serve another person, and he's found a person he likes serving in Wade. He also comes to care about Wade's family, and we can see that in how concerned he is about the kidnapping. I don't think he's so bad, really, even if the man he serves is a jerk.
I don't think he really cared that much about Jean as he did about the ransom money. If he did, he would've let Jerry make the drop as the criminals instructed him to instead of him and he wouldn't have paid for it with his life.
He was constantly rude to Jerry. Jerry was no prize, but he married his daughter. Little things, like Jerry saying, who are they playing and Wade starts yelling at the game. He knew what he was doing.
I don’t. He’s a selfish geezer that got what he deserved. If he really cared about getting his daughter back he would’ve sent Jerry to the payoff. Instead he cared more about his own greed and having his way. Guess he had to learn about that the hard way.
@@sick0spherean yes true but how could he be certain that everything was on the level. Remember throughout the movie both him and Stan looked at Jerry like he was always full of it.
@@sick0sphereanHe didn't trust Jerry (rightly so) The only thing Wade did wrong was go and meet the bad guys alone without getting help from professionals.
Wade’s big mistake was not considering that Showalter might have a gun. The way Carl was yelling at him should have put him on guard. But Wade was sure that he could reason with the ‘Punk’, as he thought of him in advance, that he didn’t expect that Showalter would draw first and shoot him. Think of the names, btw: SHOWalter and GRIMSrud. Showy and Grim.
I like the fact that they could have made Jean be this spoiled, self-absorbed rich girl but instead she's just as wholesome, kind-hearted, and humble as Marge and Norm. It makes her death all the more tragic because she thought she had the marriage that Norm and Marge have.
For all of you that haven't seen many Harvey Presnell films, if you liked him here, I suggest a lesser known film called "Escanaba in da Moonlight." It's a film about a father and his two sons on a hunting trip. All but one of them have managed to bag a buck. Jeff Daniels stars as Reuben, the son who has not yet managed to pass this family rite of passage. Harvey Presnell plays his father Albert. It is an adaptation of a stage play written by Jeff Daniels himself, and an excellent piece of cinema, especially if you love supernatural comedies.
I watched this when it came out in Leicester Square cinema. Just got out of the dentist, and anaesthetic was wearing off, and my jaw was killing me. When he got shot in the face I smiled as I held throbbing jaw , I thought " I felt that"!!
@A'TiaShaun Baker Indeed. Wrong guy with wrong intentions delivering money alone to crook already in bad mood is recipe for disaster. Carl followed the plan and Wade went to fuck it up. Most likely Carl would have blackmailed more money from Jerry, but there would have been no shooting.
did Jerry put his father in law in the trunk after he was killed or something? I did not understand the scene when Jerry drives to the top of the parking building, sees his corpse. and pops the trunk.
Stan Grossman was the true mastermind behind the kidnapping and murder. He needed Wade out of the way so he could take over. Jerry was just a fall guy in the master plan. If you recall, Stan first took Jerry’s side in the ransom plot initially but later took Wade’s side knowing that Wade would get killed! Lol
This would’ve been a great storyline in the Fargo tv series years after this event, only thing I saw so far from the series from the movie was the buried money that Oliver platts character used it to start up a grocery business in season one
My mothers father farmer ... I am swedish ... her dad was a farmer got 8 doughters and finally a son as 9 his wife almost died from all this making babies and the doctors warned him but he had a son and took over. What I am pointing on is plans rules and focus and life. This movie in its tragedy is beautiful. Showing the glow about everyday people. I had a hunch maybe I let my parents see it ... and they thought ... they just see another movie. Just like with pulp fiction they dropped everyting or true romance they watched both pictures they would not have picked up So , I had a feeling the Wade character here , and I seen photos, looks like my mothers father ... and also possibly acted like him, The Wade character here , and I seen photos, looks like my mothers father ... but possibly acted like him even more. Anyways father dropped his crosswords and mother shrunk in her sofa. This Wade character is great. Anyways, when Wade gets killed I try lighten up the mood , since my swedish parents seem too invested, I say "The Big Bear I Dead" I said. They gave me 15% smile caus they were now invested in the movie.
Wade is a very interesting character. He's gruff, arrogant, and penny-pinching, and his pride finally gets him killed. But he was completely justified in not trusting or even respecting his son-in-law Jerry.
I still can't believe Carl find out the ransom was fot $1.0 million and not $80K, and he has the money. He then goes to Gaerd to split the $80K, and get into a fight over how they split the stolen car and gets himself killed.
It kind of parallels Father Ralph DiBricissart "insisting" to Mary Carson in The Thorn Birds, that he doesn't want Drogheda but he's "Lying" through his Teeth. Wade is amazing and hilarious.
I have seen this movie 50 times already and I just figured something out that will blow your mind. Does wade remind you of anyone?? (Jeopardy music) How about Carter Pewterschmidt… ring any bells? Lois dad on family guy. Lol. Perfect match imo, even the voice.
Wade had coming to him what happened at the end. He finally ran into someone who was not going to take his controlling bullshit ,whether the situation be good or bad.
The interaction between Wade and Jerry tells you everything you need to know about their relationship. He doesn't like him or even hate him - infact even worse Wade has no regard for Jerry as a person , he tolerates him purely for his daughter's sake . Truth is this mirrors how most people in the film - with the exception of his wife and son see Jerry as ( a meek and somewhat incompetent man , who's neither likeable or destable). They initially listen to what he's about to say , but when he stumbles over himself they react with either confusion at best , annoyance or even anger at his bumbling incompetence. Harvey Presnell was brilliant as Wade Gusterson . Wade's an arrogant hardass and a bit of a jerk - which is actually what makes him such an enjoyable character.
