Alright... I guess I'm in agreement with everyone else out there -- or at least the Third Party Support podcast -- that, yes, this show is riveting. Massively suspenseful with excellent performances all around, especially from Billy Bob Thornton. There wasn't a dull moment in the 10-ish hours I spent consuming the first season.
First I want to praise the show in the direction they took for adapting the movie to a TV show, in that it really doesn't follow the movie at all. The creators could have easily done a show following Frances McDormand's police character from the film on a new case -- making the series possibly more of a procedural or something. Instead, we have brand new characters, yet will still retain the soul that I believe was at the heart of the movie. Evil comes to disrupt and corrupt the simple, happy folks in a seemingly peaceful, Podunk town. Watching Lester's slow transformation from someone I feel sorry for, to someone I weirdly root for, to someone I completely despise was a thoroughly satisfying experience. And, of course, Thornton's portrayal of Lorne Malvo was haunting causing him to steal every scene he appears in.
I do wish they would have played up Oliver Platt's character a little more. Sure, he's the strongest link to Fargo's canon laid out in the film with him finding the (I think?) $920,000 buried in the snow beneath the red ice scraper. Besides this link to finding the money hidden in the film, he's the one character truly tied to God, and I like to think that religion has a strong role in this show. In a weird way Malvo, seems to represent the devil -- in that he's pure evil lacking in any sort of human soul. Then we have this evil incarnate character playing with Oliver Platt's belief in God to the point that Platt puts the money back where his found it in fear that he's angered God somehow. Then, out of nowhere, it rains fish causing Platt's character's son to die in a car accident. And thus concludes Platt's character's arc. All of which felt a little sudden and unsatisfying.
Honestly, I'm not sure what to make of this. I'll accept that this isn't Platt's story (despite the strong link to the film), but then help me make sense of all this supernatural imagery. What lesson am I suppose to learn from these events? What should I take away as an audience member? This is definitely something that bugs me.
While I just finished season two, I'll have another bone to pick with this supernatural context buried in this show. (More to come later.)
Point is, this show is riveting and I'm glad I finally hopped on the bandwagon and watched it. But if anyone can provide any context to this religious allegory, it would be much appreciated.
One final point... why Fargo? While I appreciate what the show is, why did it have to be holding onto the coat tails of the movie. For publicity? Sure, the move is excellent (one of my favorites), but I don't think there's a whole lot of recognition for it. Certainly nothing that would entice me to hitch a new show's wagon to it -- even more so if the show barely has anything to do with the movie! Seems like this series could easily stand on it's own, but here we are with a TV show set in the film's canon, yet it actually has very little to do with the movie. I do have some sneaking suspicions on how this show could truly connect with the Coen brothers' film, but I'm hoping these questions will be answered in later seasons.
However, it still bugs me. Just a bit.
On that note, I'm pitching a new idea for a great TV show about a guy named Will who happens to a good hunter. I'm calling it Good Will Hunting. Before you ask... Yes, it does take place in the same canon as the movie with the same name, but there will never be any mention of Damon, Affleck, or Williams in the whole thing. Just a show about a decent hunter with a common male name. Brilliant? Yeah, I thought you would agree.
First I want to praise the show in the direction they took for adapting the movie to a TV show, in that it really doesn't follow the movie at all. The creators could have easily done a show following Frances McDormand's police character from the film on a new case -- making the series possibly more of a procedural or something. Instead, we have brand new characters, yet will still retain the soul that I believe was at the heart of the movie. Evil comes to disrupt and corrupt the simple, happy folks in a seemingly peaceful, Podunk town. Watching Lester's slow transformation from someone I feel sorry for, to someone I weirdly root for, to someone I completely despise was a thoroughly satisfying experience. And, of course, Thornton's portrayal of Lorne Malvo was haunting causing him to steal every scene he appears in.
I do wish they would have played up Oliver Platt's character a little more. Sure, he's the strongest link to Fargo's canon laid out in the film with him finding the (I think?) $920,000 buried in the snow beneath the red ice scraper. Besides this link to finding the money hidden in the film, he's the one character truly tied to God, and I like to think that religion has a strong role in this show. In a weird way Malvo, seems to represent the devil -- in that he's pure evil lacking in any sort of human soul. Then we have this evil incarnate character playing with Oliver Platt's belief in God to the point that Platt puts the money back where his found it in fear that he's angered God somehow. Then, out of nowhere, it rains fish causing Platt's character's son to die in a car accident. And thus concludes Platt's character's arc. All of which felt a little sudden and unsatisfying.
Honestly, I'm not sure what to make of this. I'll accept that this isn't Platt's story (despite the strong link to the film), but then help me make sense of all this supernatural imagery. What lesson am I suppose to learn from these events? What should I take away as an audience member? This is definitely something that bugs me.
While I just finished season two, I'll have another bone to pick with this supernatural context buried in this show. (More to come later.)
Point is, this show is riveting and I'm glad I finally hopped on the bandwagon and watched it. But if anyone can provide any context to this religious allegory, it would be much appreciated.
One final point... why Fargo? While I appreciate what the show is, why did it have to be holding onto the coat tails of the movie. For publicity? Sure, the move is excellent (one of my favorites), but I don't think there's a whole lot of recognition for it. Certainly nothing that would entice me to hitch a new show's wagon to it -- even more so if the show barely has anything to do with the movie! Seems like this series could easily stand on it's own, but here we are with a TV show set in the film's canon, yet it actually has very little to do with the movie. I do have some sneaking suspicions on how this show could truly connect with the Coen brothers' film, but I'm hoping these questions will be answered in later seasons.
However, it still bugs me. Just a bit.
On that note, I'm pitching a new idea for a great TV show about a guy named Will who happens to a good hunter. I'm calling it Good Will Hunting. Before you ask... Yes, it does take place in the same canon as the movie with the same name, but there will never be any mention of Damon, Affleck, or Williams in the whole thing. Just a show about a decent hunter with a common male name. Brilliant? Yeah, I thought you would agree.
I did feel like a lot of the characters were similar to ones from the movie- Molly felt a lot like Frances Mcdormand's character, and Wrench and Numbers (I think those were their names) felt a lot like Stormare and Buscemi's characters. There's a lot of Jerry Lundegaard in Lester Nygaard too. But really I think Noah Hawley really just loved the setting, humor and tone of the movie and felt like it was ripe for television, even if it doesn't totally connect to the film.
ReplyDeleteI feel ya, but why carry the name? It doesn't feel like they're expanding upon the story, so why not let it exist as its own beast? I understand the desire to latch onto a franchise that already has a connection with the audience, but this series seems like it could have done just fine all on its own.
ReplyDeleteBut I will do my best to hold my tongue as it's possible they're going to tie the show in the with the movie in a more relevant way in the seasons to come.
I realize that I'm just splitting hairs over this issue. Regardless of the shows title, the only thing that truly matters is did I have a good time watching the show? You bet your ass I did.
Nah, Season 2 is even less connected to the film than Season 1. To expand on what Sween said, I wonder - let's say Hawley had abandoned the lone connection to the movie (the buried money) and called the show something completely different. I think if this show had made it to the air, a large contingent of people would have immediately noticed the Fargo similarities and called Hawley a hack. It almost feels like by directly acknowledging the Coen film, Hawley was freely admitting that his premise wasn't entirely original. Of course, directly tying it to such a beloved movie would have opened up a whole different can of worms if this show had been anything less than absolutely amazing. Good thing it was! And while I agree that the show doesn't "need" the brand recognition associated with the movie, I think each benefits from an association to the other; the show being fantastic got me and several others I know to re-watch the movie (Netflix royalties!) and I'm sure it got plenty of other people to watch the movie for the first time (like Marissa).
ReplyDeleteBut yeah, I share your confusion about Oliver Platt and the abrupt end of his story after six episodes. The raining fish were weird too - although there's an even crazier thing that plays into the climactic episode of Season 2, so hopefully the fish weren't a complete buzzkill or anything.
ReplyDeleteWeirdly, Season 1 seemed to be two separate, smaller seasons. There's the Platt and Wrench and Numbers half, and then there's the Key & Peele and flash-forward half. (Not quite halves, but, you know.)
Man, just reading your post reminds me how much I loved Season 1. I think I even liked it more than Season 2, which pretty much everyone agrees was the best show of 2015! Looking forward to your Season 2 thoughts.