FX is airing a ten-part “limited series” called Fargo. It’s an interesting adaptation, because it borrows neither the plot nor characters from the Coen Brothers film; rather, it attempts to recreate the look and feel in a similar (still Minnesota, but not Minneapolis or Brainerd) setting. Billy Bob Thornton and Martin Freeman head a great cast that also includes Colin Hanks and a new actress named Allison Tolman.
The critics love it, and I was intrigued enough by the description that I’ve checked out the first two episodes. I am HOOKED. I wasn’t sure after one episode, but I am sure after two. All the things that made the film so interesting and different are here in this series, minus the specific talents of the film's amazing cast. I have one reservation, and it is the length of the series. They’re going to have to introduce several more plot elements to keep this thing interesting for eight more episodes, because I don’t think they can stretch what they have.
FX is a basic-cable station, one of those which usually follows the same schedule blocking as the broadcast networks, but of course it doesn’t have to, and episodes of Fargo are an hour and fifteen minutes in length, just like the early days of basic cable when shows on USA would sometimes end or begin twenty-five minutes after the hour, if that’s the time that was needed. Honestly, it feels kind of like watching a very short movie each week (so far).
The critics love it, and I was intrigued enough by the description that I’ve checked out the first two episodes. I am HOOKED. I wasn’t sure after one episode, but I am sure after two. All the things that made the film so interesting and different are here in this series, minus the specific talents of the film's amazing cast. I have one reservation, and it is the length of the series. They’re going to have to introduce several more plot elements to keep this thing interesting for eight more episodes, because I don’t think they can stretch what they have.
FX is a basic-cable station, one of those which usually follows the same schedule blocking as the broadcast networks, but of course it doesn’t have to, and episodes of Fargo are an hour and fifteen minutes in length, just like the early days of basic cable when shows on USA would sometimes end or begin twenty-five minutes after the hour, if that’s the time that was needed. Honestly, it feels kind of like watching a very short movie each week (so far).
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