A Lot Can Happen in the Middle of Nowhere: The Untold Story of the Making of Fargo

by Todd Melby, William H. Macy (Foreword)

Go behind the scenes at this classic '90s film from cinematic masters Joel and Ethan Coen. Ya, you betcha, you’re gonna discover some fascinating tidbits to celebrate the film's 25th anniversary.

The 1996 movie Fargo stirred widespread curiosity about snowy winters, funny accents, and bloody mayhem on the frozen tundra of Minnesota and North Dakota. The film won two Academy Awards and inspired a popular, award-winning television series. It is also a quintessentially Minnesota film—or is it?

A Lot Can Happen in the Middle of Nowhere presents the untold stories behind the making of Joel and Ethan Coen's most memorable film. It explores the behind-the-scenes creative moments that made Fargo a critical and cultural success, including casting struggles, the battles over dialect, production challenges (a lack of snow), and insights from the screenplay and deleted scenes. Author Todd Melby examines to what extent the story was inspired by true events (as the film claims), and whether the Coens are trustworthy narrators of their own story. In addition to biographical details about the Coen Brothers, the book reveals what Fargo says about Minnesota and the Midwest.

Genres: Nonfiction, Film

216 pages, Paperback

Published March 2, 2021

Reviews

[Ross Maclean]

It teeters on the brink of not quite having sufficient access to the main players (eg. the Coens, McDormand, Buscemi, Stormare — all notable by their absence, which lends occasional portions a sense of ‘heard it all before’) but it more than makes up for it with the contributions from William H Macy and a number of the minor players, of whom Fargo so beautifully leans on. As a summary of the film’s inception to release, with insights and through a Minnesota lens, this more than satisfyingly does the job. And when you adore Fargo as much as I do, just the simple act of reading about things that make you remember moments in the film takes you at least halfway there.

[Barry Hammond]

Todd Melby does the research and interviews with all involved to tell the story of the making of the film, Fargo, by the Coen Brothers. He uncovers lots of unheard tales and anecdotes as interesting and humorous as the film itself. - BH.

[Garrett Rowlan]

While not my favorite Coen brother film--that would be the surreal Barton Fink--Fargo is right up there, and this book that goes into its conception and making shows the maneuvers, negotiations, and false starts that it seems almost ever film runs into. What's amazing (among many things) are the minor blip the film made at the box office when released when compared to films in wider release at that time, films now entirely forgotten. (Anyone rented "Homeward Bound 11" lately?) What I find interesting in reading about film making is the vast amount of effort that doesn't either make it to or show on screen. I supposed that's an analogy to the various drafts that go into the writing of a book, the difference being that when millions are at stake, tearing up something and redoing it is bound to produce a plethora of dread.

[Mark]

A truly great book, with just enough "inside baseball" for the film folks, and a lot of great anecdotal episodes and storytelling from Todd Melby.
Exhaustively researched and told in a style that draws you into the narrative and leaves you wanting to turn the page to see what the hell happened next.
Do yourself a favor and read this and then re-watch the film!

[Scott]

If I had been drinking something when the author said he doesn't stream movies or watch them on dvd or blu-ray, I definitely would've done a spit take.

[Dilly Dalley]

As part of a family commitment to rewatch all the Cohen brothers' films, I purchased a few relevant books. One of them was this one on the making of Fargo. It was published in 2021, so about 25 years after the release of the film which pushed the Cohen brothers from quirky indie to Hollywood Oscar fame. The tone of the book is defined by the time passed and the surety with which the film Fargo has entered the popular consciousness. Consequently, the book's tone when interviewing and writing about the participants of the filmmaking process - mainly the actors, production assistants, casting directors etc - is one of 'wow did you realise what a big hit it would be?'. The other significant voice in the book is influenced by the author's Todd Melby's residential status - as a local Minneapolis resident he writes from within the "Minnesota Nice" awareness. A fair chunk of the book's analysis is spent on accent coaching and the different approaches to it.

I enjoyed this book and with each delicious detail I became more convinced that as soon as I finished it, I would have to rewatch the film. I wanted to spot all the little details that I had glossed over in the previous three times I had seen the film. And it was worth it. That rewatch after reading the book, definitely enhanced my appreciation of the artistry of the film.

Some of the other things I noted in the reading was that a few of the stories about the Cohen brothers in the book are less than flattering - which was interesting. Also, I reflected much more on the mocking tone of the film and had it spelled out to me that really maybe the brothers did not love their home state that much.

If you are into Cohen brothers' films, I highly recommend this book. Easy to read, full of anecdotes that enhance your appreciation of the artistry of the film, plus the book begins and ends with the woodchipper. Can you even remember the time before the woodchipper in film scene?

[Missy]

I am short on time so I first want to second Ross Maclean's review here on Goodreads.

As a fan of the film, the Coens, and Frances McDormand, AND as a Minnesotan, I found this entertaining and enjoyable. It was clearly very well researched, but the lack of direct interviews with the Coens, McDormand, and others was disappointing. I reveled in the William H. Macy content and really enjoyed reading the many interviews that were done and all the casting stories. It was fun to hear the stories of the filmmakers hurdles and compromises as a reader knowing how big an impact the film would have.

[Donna]

Slight but Entertaining

An enjoyable read, with lots of interesting details about the filming of "Fargo" - but at $8.99 for the Kindle version and more than $18 for the paperback, it's way overpriced. There's a lot of padding at the end, too - bibliography, index, etc. - that bloats its page count. If you're a huge "Fargo" fan (and I am), the behind-the-scenes anecdotes might warrant the price, but there are no big revelations or reveals: just movie trivia.

[Daniel Hauser]

This book is a must-read for anyone who's watched Fargo more than once. Well-written and well-researched. Melby has an array of great, behind-the-scenes stories without going into too much minutiae. Well done!

[Alice]

I love film, live in Minnesota and work in theater, so this was fun to read. There was a lot about process, talking to the dialect coach, etc. and a lot about the local actors, all which was really fun to read about. It could drag in parts, but I liked it overall.

[Mike Buckman]

Living on the Iron Range, I can vouch for the veracity of this book and the movie.

[Jacob]

Great behind the scenes stories, but severely hurt by not having the Coen Brothers' insight.

[Melissa Doolittle]

Entertaining book if you are a fan of the movie Fargo

[Sara R]

My biggest gripe is how short it is!

[Sara Tan]

An enjoyable read about a movie that has had significant impact in the culture of minnesota. A lot of interesting stories and background that makes the movie come to life even more.

[rick]

The factual details of production are interesting. Wish there were more insight about the narrative of the film instead of merely regurgitating the scenes, but the context notes come close.

[Joseph Mac]

A bit undercooked. I was hoping for quite a bit more detail, and kept finding myself perplexed by the arrangement of the info, which sometimes seemed to follow little logic.

[Hopie]

Oh yah