Fargo & the Value of the Hollywood Remake by Edward Christie

So I have my first exterior submission for a review and it's a little different from what I normally post. My friend and fellow film student, Edward, has submitted an essay entitled Fargo and the value of the Hollywood remake. Remember, if you want to submit a review or essay of your own, you can email me at jackreviewsubmit@gmail.com

Fargo & the Value of the Hollywood Remake

by Edward Christie

As the text “This is a true story” began to fade in over the long snowy road covered in darkness, the first thought that hit my mind was, “Oh here we go again, another hollywood carbon copy”. Thankfully within the first half of episode one, it became apparent that this was not the case. The TV series “Fargo”, rebooted by Foxtel’s FX channel is not a mere remake of the classic Coen Brother’s 1996 film of the same name, nor does it carry on from those events as some form of sequel. Instead, the series takes the premise of the characters and the environment, and weaves them into a new, intriguing and amusing plot. Unlike some other reviewers, I would not describe the characters as brand new, as there are many crucial similarities between the series’ characters and their film counterparts.Rather, I see the series as more of a ‘What if?’ scenario, exploring a parallel universe with similar quirky characters that experience a comparable yet provocative series of events that you will find absolutely impossible to stop watching until the close.

The acting from the cast is superb all round, but especially from Martin Freeman, who certainly does justice to William H. Macy’s Academy Award Nominated performance. I found the cinematography to be a little bit more active here than it was in the film - which in my opinion contains some of the most provocative static shots in film history - yet overall it manages to uphold the same aesthetic that Roger Deakin’s & the Coen Bros. created, which is crucial to the unusual feel of the film. Overall, I cannot recommend the series to you more, especially if you are a fan of the original movie. But of course, I’m sure you’ve heard the same advice from countless reviewers by now.

There was one question though, that really gnawed at my brain throughout: Is it the fantastic acting, directing and writing that I find truly enjoyable about the series, or is it more the weird, sadly humorous and utterly depressing universe that the Coen Brother’s created that keeps me coming back for more? I cannot understate the importance of the aforementioned qualities of the series but the core concepts that make it so enjoyable - the town, the people, their accents, the original crimes & the offbeat humour - are all undeniably present in the film (albeit in different forms). It is therefore challenging to decide who truly deserves the acclamation for this series.

There are other instances where this is also the case. Another contemporary example would be Netflix’s House of Cards - a remake of the original BBC political drama - which so far has been brilliant in almost every respect. Yet despite possessing the unmeasurable talent of Kevin Spacey, who in my not so humble opinion is probably the greatest actor of his generation, I find it difficult for his Underwood to surpass Ian Richardson’s scheming, cheeky, quintessentially British Francis Urquhart. Of course, this is all down to a matter of opinion, but I personally believe that no matter how outstanding the remake/sequel/spin off, whatever you want to call it, will be (and don’t get me wrong, both Fargo and House of Cards certainly do justice to their predecessors), I will most likely always turn off my TV or walk out of the theatre thinking, “Well that was brilliant, but was it really necessary?”.

So I’d like to summarise this article with three ratings:

Fargo (1996 Film): 4 stars

Fargo (2014 Television Series): 3 & ½ stars

The concept of Hollywood Remakes: 1 star.