FARGO Movie: Analysis and Screenwriting Tips 

The most recent draft I wrote was super generic. And I did a pass keeping in mind the 'Be Specific' bit. Definitely made the story at least 1% better. There's so much to learn. Thanks guys. Please keep putting out videos.

In the infamous scene with Mike Yanagita, Marge doesn't let him sit next to her and softens the blow by saying she prefers to face her companion across the table. In the buffet scene she and her husband sit on the same side of the table.

The way Jerry wails when the police are arresting him was always so disturbing to me. Like an actual weasel caught by its tail. Like he can’t hide his true form anymore, they’ve caught him, the real him, the weasel

I think another important detail is the subtext the Coen's use. And how their introduction of interesting/compelling side characters utilizes this idea. Mike Yanagita is a great character to elucidate the subtext of Marge coming to the realization that no matter how someone appears on the outside (friendly, courteous, put together), there can always be more to them and their true intentions can be revealed. This is found out when Marge discovers that Yanagita lied about losing his wife. Thus, Marge is able to use this experience and decides to go back to the dealership to question Jerry further.

One of my favorite under-the-radar aspects of this tour de force film is the relationship of Marge and Norm. They have few scenes together but when they are interacting, the chemistry between the actors expertly conveys the love Marge and Norm have for each other. Marge was *so* proud of his three cent stamp, and, as a result, so was I.

Soundtrack in this movie is another character itself. Masterpiece.

I like the comparison of Jerry and Carl. I didn't notice it that clearly.

Coen brothers' use of frequent silent pauses during dialog is totally brilliant.

It's amazing that Margie doesn't appear until about minute 40. In the hands of a lesser writer, this would have been a Lifetime movie of the week where every scene is played cliche and obvious.

"be spesific and not generic and your story will come to life"...well formulated!

As much as I know The Big Lebowski is the Coen Brothers most popular movie, I really belive that Fargo is a undisputed masterpiece. (and that's like my opinion man).

Nice video, man! Keep going and you'll grow quickly.

Great analysis!!! My fav movie of all time and I think it's definitely mostly because of how compellingly the characters are written. It's obvious that Carl's motormouth gets him into trouble, but I never considered how brilliantly Jerry's lack of self-advocacy parallels that. Good work.

Bit late to the party with this video but I have always loved this screenplay for it's sparse, clean pages, minimal action lines and yet it communicates so much. If you want to get your script read, this is a good way to go rather than having text heavy, overly descriptive tomes. This is a joy to read every time I pick it up. I own a copy of the Faber and Faber edition published around the time of the film. I have also spotted the minor changes from script to screen and one that I always remember is from the opening scene when Carl says 'he's peed three times already'. In the script he says 'I've peed three times' - but it feels more accurate in the film - just works better and seems more likely what Carl would say - talking on behalf of his silent partner.

Such a hilarious film. I love how accurately the dialogue and accents are to the real locations, fucking great.

Good insight. I always loved Fargo, and never realized the amount of detail in the script. The dialogue seemed so real and authentic.

Cohen brothers is absolutely stellar at making characters feel real. Whether this come from Jerry being captured and acting like a literal baby or in No Country where Ed Toms charter is worried about new evils and how the times are changing

That was a great point about Carl being Jerry’s shadow version. It had to be intentional and yet you are the only person I’ve heard bring it up. You sir, are a genius.

This film is genius 👏

6:54 fun fact: the original script said “blue Sierra” but William Macy really wanted to say “burnt umber Sierra”, so they eventually just let him

"Fargo: is a brilliant movie and deserves all the acclaim (Oscars, etc.) it has received!

Love Fargo. At 2:47, Norm fell asleep with a bag of Old Dutch potato chips. Great regional detail. Native of Upper Midwest, haven’t seen that brand in years.

I going to post on this old thread hoping someone else has noticed something in almost every Cohen bros films : There are use of visual representation using objects that float through the film with no explanation; the biker in rating Arizona, the hat in millers crossing, the cat dropping objects and body parts onto the ferry on Lady Killers and the “Dapper Dan” can in oh brother where ar’t thou?”… there are more I just can’t think of at

This is a hilarious classic movie. One thing I noticed is that Grimsrud shot a man with a red jacket on his back. Later when Marge saw Grimsrud she also shot him on his back. I don't know if that's an important aspect but it's kind of funny though.

Great Analyses, sir. I myself think Miller's Crossing is just as great. Underrated.

I've found that this movie is similar to the novel _The Great Gatsby_ in that they're both relatively short, always forward moving, and neither have an ounce of flabbiness.

Can't wait for your glow-up, my guy! These breakdowns are so useful! :D

What most of you don't know is that Mike Yanakida played by Steve Park also played the korean father in Do the right thing. That alone blew my mind even though both Fargo and Do the right thing are like only 7 years apart !

That "Go Bears..." has gotta be ad-libbed, because its small and subtle lines like that, that really lets the audience know that the story has people, not just an npc or background character.

this is brilliant.i found this channel recently but learnt lot from you and ur channel.thank you for also ur english caption for understand better

Wow you do so well on all of these!

There is alot of emphasis on the color "red" to me in this movie, which is the color of the devil. Red is also the color of blood, and this movie also emphasizes that red is a bad color. Just watch the film again and you'll know what I mean.

Amazing content! You've got yourself a new subscriber.

Another great video !!

I watched this the other day at the New Bev. One thing that struck me, why do you think the Coens included the plot thread of Jerry trying to do the deal w/ his Father in Law at the same time he's planning the kidnapping? I thought it worked well but when writing a story like this, it wasn't necessarily an obvious choice. Namely because you would think that he wouldn't put the kidnapping in motion until he got a firm "No". I think 99% of the time the screenwriter would wait for that "No" and THEN go through with the kidnapping. It did create a nice situation where he's trying to get ahold of them and can't to cancel it. But what did you think?

Great channel, Script Sleuth. Your analysis is really insightful. I think the Coen brothers put a lot of thought and originality into their scripts - and Fargo is a film I really enjoyed - so this was a good choice for study. The idea of making references specific rather than generic is easily overlooked. Not only can the use of overly generic terms ("I'm watching the ice hockey game" vs "I'm watching the Gophers", to borrow your example) make dialogue sound hollow and clunky but it misses the opportunity to add local colour and texture to your film world. In a stageplay script of mine that I had an amateur theatre group reading one time a character who'd fled London to the remote countryside explains "I borrowed some money off the Turks on the Edgeware Road". Now, I don't know for a fact if there are informal money lenders operating in that part of the city nor whether many, or any, of them are Turkish. I just felt that "the Turks" was a more interesting phrase to use than "some people" and by evoking a High Street setting dominated by Turkish cafes and so forth (little seen in any great concentration within the UK outside of London) it would offer up a pleasing contrast between multicultural London and the ethnically-homogenous rural town the character had ended up in. Sadly someone in the cast was concerned it might be deemed racist so the blander option was the one we used. I kind of saw the point and it really wasn't a battle worth fighting, but it's nice to hear someone else voicing the same kind of ideas.

Wow. Incredible insight. Thank you for this high quality analysis! subscribed.

Really enjoyed this! Lots to think about next time I write!

My favorite movie

Fargo is a brilliant representation of the mundane. The Coens don't sit in judgment, they just show people in the act of living their lives. Individuals operating in their own universe are not good or bad, they just are. Jerry Lundigard weaves his own web of deceit which is the core of the plot. The writing is so good that you can easily imagine a more complete view of each of the characters lives without having to.

How did Carl Showalter get involved in the kidnapping plot? Shep Proudfoot says “don’t know him, don’t vouch for him.” Did Grimsrud decide to bring him on and not tell Shep?

great video! one small detail that bugs me, though, is it’s not a “burgundy ‘98” as in 1998, it’s a “burgundy ninety-eight” as in oldsmobile ninety-eight, which is the model of car jerry drives. the movie takes place in 1987, so it can’t be a ‘98 model year.

Great stuff. One other thing I would add, even though I'm a little late to the discussion.....how they use both the muscial score and the ambiance/surroundings/environment (weather, giant statue, Jose Filipiano) to move the story along. Genius. And one last thing......is there any better screenwritting in the history of filmaking than the discussion with Mr. Mohra? I think not.....

Great analysis! 🖖

Great video!

Superb video!

Marge didn't have a tryst with Mike. It was a lunch, not a rendezvous.

That was amazing !

Great great vid!

(Brazilian for Google translate) great video, I never realized this topic about the details

Great video :)

Yeah the real place names is a nice touch, except many of us Minnesotans know darn well that Moose Lake is nowhere near White Bear Lake, and that Edina was never the same school district as Eden Prairie

Thanks. This was. Er helpful

Really great movie.

What other films would you like to see me cover? Let me know in a comment below!

3 cent stamp...VERY funny line

The coen brothers wrote that he was funny looking and that is Steve Buscemi

The Coens are the greatest living screenwriters Tell me someone who’s better!

I've seen Fargo countess times, but the 'faxed serial numbers' bit, while very funny, never seemed to connect to the story - except vaguely to the one car- the burnt umber Sierra. Why all the other cars?

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Until I watched this video I totally missed the visual connection between Grimsrud and Paul Bunyan.

Movie also has the grisliest killing scene of Annie movie in modern history, not even the Mexican cartels never thought of a wood chipper

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Can you do a Guy Ritchie one please

Go Bears!

What're the names of your background scores? All of them that you could name.

I can't remember... why does Marge meet Mike in the first place?

There seems to be a lot of Jerry’s in this world today.

I unfortunately don't find myself good at applying the "be specific, not generic" tip. It's a matter of how to apply it to my story. I feel like you don't explain it enough for at least me to understand. This may also definitely be due to my lack of proper understanding on how to do it.

Ya, that was good movie, oh ya?, Ya. You sure but that? Ya. oh ya.

She shot a suspect on the back , don't look good in court

Why didn't Carl just leave??

I think without the funny accents in this movie, not many would care about it. I never understood why people like this movie so much.

How the hell WGA put Shawshank Redemption above Fargo in the 101 greatest screenplays?!!!!!

Marge and Mike met for lunch. Maybe it was a date. A tryst is a private romantic rendezvous between lovers.

Its just hilarious seeing a Japanese man talking with a midnorthern accent like that

Great writing in Fargo, but that wasn't a tryst. You need to look up the definition. Marge wasn't Mike's lover. I stopped watching at that point.

Respect the audience. What a joke. The first thing the Coen's do is lie. This is not a true story, they made that up. I have no respect after that. - Sidney Cris

Great video!