Fargo - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts

[discussimdb]

Fan of Fargo or just want to share your movie knowledge? This topic is dedicated to all trivia and questions related to Fargo

[riley]

The actors used a book called "How to Talk Minnesotan" to help with their accents.

[frederick]

The Coens (Joel Coen & Ethan Coen) wrote the scene at the restaurant with Mike (Steve Park) to develop Marge's (Frances McDormand) character outside of the case or her marriage.

[bernice]

Near the end of the movie when the sheriff is shooting at Gaear Grimsrud (Peter Stormare) on the frozen lake, he is wearing Canadian armed forces winter warfare snow boots, which must have picked up at a surplus store. When he falls down after being shot, it's possible to see the price of the boots on the sole, written with a felt-tip pen.

[miriam]

The scene where the couple tries to make a deal with Jerry is based on Ethan Coen's real-life encounter with a car salesman. "[It's] almost a verbatim transcript of my experience."

[bryan]

Frances McDormand wore a "pregnancy pillow" filled with birdseed to simulate her pregnant belly. She says that she didn't deliberately try to move in a "pregnant" way, it simply came as a natural response to keeping the extra weight balanced.

[steve]

The snow plow that drives past the motel at the end of the film was not part of the script. Signs in the area warned motorists not to drive through due to filming, but a state employee ignored them.

[manuel]

The Coen Brothers (Joel Coen & Ethan Coen) later admitted the film is not based on a 'true story' or real characters but felt that notice at the beginning helped viewers connect with the story.

[lonnie]

Kristin Rudrüd, who played kidnapping victim Jean Lundegaard, was actually born in Fargo, ND.

[bryan]

At 1:08, when Carl Showalter is telling Jerry where to meet, he says: " 30 minutes and we'll wrap this up." Which is exactly how much longer the run time has left.

[mathew]

In his book "Stand for Something: The Battle for America's Soul," Ohio governor John Kasich spends three pages describing his hatred for the film.

[jesus]

The wood chipper used in the movie is now on display at the Fargo-Moorhead Visitors Center.

[lynn]

In the Lundegaard's house, the magazine rack by the toilet holds a Playboy magazine. It's visible when Jerry (William H. Macy) comes back home and sees the aftermath of the kidnapping.

[alyssa]

When working on her Minnesota accent for the film, Frances McDormand worked with Larissa Kokernot, "Hooker #1." McDormand referred to her accent and mannerisms as "Minnesota Nice."

[morris]

The item on the buffet line that Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand) skips is lutefisk, which is dried whitefish, cod or ling, that has been soaked in lye. It has a gelatinous texture and by all accounts, is an acquired taste, in part due to its smell. Madison, Minnesota claims to have the highest lutefisk consumption in the U.S., higher than in Scandanavia.

[tamara]

Frances McDormand worked with a pregnant cop from St. Paul to research the role.

[stephanie]

Features William H. Macy's only Oscar nominated performance.

[cameron]

John Carroll Lynch credits this film as starting his film career as he and two thirds of the cast had been from the Minnesota area. Lynch's character as written, was a former police office5 and acted as if he was showing interest when his character was listening to Margie talking about police business during his initial take of his first scene. Lynch said the Coen brothers looked at each other, Joel Coen went to him and said "He doesn't care about any of this. He's just waiting for her to be done."

[scarlett]

The Mike Yanagita scene is often considered one of the most pointless scenes in cinema history, but it's not. Marge's discovery that everything Mike told her was a lie ultimately led to her investigating Jerry further.

[kylie]

When Jerry (William H. Macy) meets Wade (Harve Presnell) and Stan (Larry Brandenburg) to discuss the ransom, the restaurant muzak system is playing "Feels So Good" by Chuck Mangione.