Supercut of The "Minnesota Nice" Accent in The Coen Brothers' FARGO
The FX series Fargo is one of the best shows of the current Peak TV era. Before the show started, I went back and watched the Coen Brothers' 1996 film on which it's loosely based, and was shocked at how great it was. I'd seen it once probably ten years ago, but this second viewing really impressed me. Not only does it still completely hold up twenty years after its debut, but it's arguably one of the Coens' greatest cinematic achievements.
While we can talk all day about the more serious aspects of the movie, one of the simple pleasures I enjoy about it is hearing the Minnesota accents. I've lived in the southern part of the U.S. for all my life (on both coasts), so it's an accent that's completely alien to me. In a new piece at Fandor, Candice Drouet put together a supercut of all the best accent moments from the movie, and explained the purpose of why the Coens utilized it so much in the film. Check it out, yeah?
The use of ‘Minnesota Nice’ in Fargo serves three purposes. First, it creates an eccentric, even exotic atmosphere for what might otherwise be seen as the heart of middle America at its most well-mannered and “normal.” Second, the variety of distinctively regional figures of speech and vocal tics spoken by a cast of atypical characters provides a kind of musical rhythm to the dialogue. Lastly, the pleasantness of these first two effects contrasts sharply with the severity of the crimes committed over the course of the film, creating a distinctly dark humor that’s unique among all films, even the Coens’.