Fargo (2014) s04e11 – Storia Americana

This episode runs under forty minutes. The first few episodes ran over an hour. So why does “Fargo: Season Four” need a coda? I mean, besides them not finishing the story last episode so they could eek out just one more.

The episode opens with a montage of all the people who have died this season, confirming at least one I assumed was still… well, up in the air. It’s going to end with the tie-in to the other “Fargo” series in a mid-credits scene, but it’s a predictable-ish tie-in. There have only been so many Black people in “Fargo” until this season. If someone’s going to be a descendant or relation… there’s a very limited pool.

Once things with Jessie Buckley and Jason Schwartzman get resolved—gang consigliere Francesco Acquaroli didn’t know about Buckley and Schwartzman being a couple and he’s got a bunch of thoughts, especially how things should be going forward—there’s just time for a rushed new Chris Rock subplot. Edwin Lee Gibson is causing more trouble. Except this time Rock doesn’t need wife J. Nicole Brooks to do the Lady MacBeth thing, he can handle it himself. Sort of.

See, it’s not like Rock or Schwartzman were criminal masterminds. Schwartzman’s incompetent because it’s supposed to be funny, but Rock’s supposed to be the competent one only he never does anything right. Plus Glynn Turman was clearly smarter than Rock. Much like Buckley, it’s impossible to imagine how these characters got to these points in their lives. With all three, that problem is the writing. It’s way too thin and relies way too much on the actors being distracting. Buckley’s got all sorts of busy mannerisms and Linda Cardellini stuff to do, while Schwartzman mugs like he’s in a Rushmore skit, and Rock tries to figure out why they hired him in the first place.

He’s really effective this episode when he finally gets to play the family man, but since the whole show’s about how he’s not a family man and it’s not like there’s been any relevant character development—there have been some related events, but if Noah Hawley’s gotten to the point where he’d called them character development… well, actually, it would explain a lot about the season.

There’s a little bit with E'myri Crutchfield tying back to the first episode when it pretended it was going to be about her.

It’s the best episode Dana Gonzales directed all season for sure but it’s not like it can save the season. Does it save the show? I’d probably be back for a season five to start, no matter what—so the last three episodes did stop the sinking—but I really hope Hawley doesn’t make another one.

The highlight of a season shouldn’t be a single one-off episode. It doesn’t even have a consistent stand-out cast member. It’s a disaster of a season.

Fargo (2014) s04e07 – Lay Away

I was really happy to see Dana Gonzales directed this episode because the direction’s bad and since I no longer have any confidence in “Fargo” anymore whatsoever I was worried it was one of the good directors this season going to pot.

This episode seems to reveal the big problem—and not just co-writers (with Noah Hawley) Enzo Mileti and Scott Wilson, they’re definitely contributing to the worst episode—and it’s “Fargo: Season Four” doesn’t have enough story. Too many characters, not enough story. They’re benching actors—so like, Timothy Olyphant not showing up to episode three is in a different light—this episode Jessie Buckley gets off the bench at the beginning.

We’ve been promised a Buckley vs. shitty WASP Stephen Spencer since episode two or so and we finally get the resolution. It’s predictable and not very good and then segues into Buckley being too inept to have been as successful at her proclivities without getting busted. But the show also wants enough suspension of disbelief for Jason Schwartzman–who you can actually watch not be able to figure out how to act in his scenes before he picks the worst possible choice—as the mob boss, so I guess Buckley not being reasonably intelligent enough is just another thing. Another fail for “Fargo.”

Lots more flashbacks. Some of them are risible, like the multi-panel ones of Schwartzman and brother Salvatore Esposito bickering. Now, Esposito is benched this episode until the very end. He was benched most of last episode too. I’m not sure if the show’s really missed him exactly. I’ve missed him, but only sort of. It’s not when he’s in play he’s doing anything particularly good anymore. And if Gonzales is directing, it’s downright bad.

Jack Huston’s got an original flashback, which is something at least. I haven’t softened on Huston’s performance but it’s a terrible part. No one in “Fargo: Season Four,” it turns out, gets a good part. They get a potential Emmy win, but not a good part. Because they’re all fighting for the same two awards or whatever and no one gets anything good.

Though James Vincent Meredith is quickly becoming a real asset as one of Chris Rock’s guys.

And Chris Rock has a fine enough episode. But he’s not, like, great. It’s not the Actor’s Workshop with Chris Rock or whatever. He’s good, sometimes better than good, but he can’t rise about the material.

Big obvious Miller’s Crossing shot at the opening. Sadly it’s the best direction in the whole thing.

After giving J. Nicole Brooks—Chris Rock’s wife—a big, pointless scene opposite Gaetano Bruno, the show cheats her out of an important real scene later.

It’s hard to imagine what’s going to happen in the four remaining episodes, except—hopefully—everyone getting killed off so they won’t be back for “Season Five.” Though, at this point, unless they take the show away from Hawley and company… there’s no point in anyone coming back for a “Fargo: Season Five.”

It’s finally as bad as I figured it would be hearing about it. Though, again, it’s not “Fargo: The Series,” it’s “Miller’s Crossing: The Series.” It’s like Hawley’s betting the “Fargo” audience hasn’t seen Miller’s.

Oh, and the stupid ghost is back.

Would the ghost be stupid if Gonzales weren’t directing? Not sure. Probably. But it’s a slug of a show.

Fargo (2014) s04e06 – Camp Elegance

So it’s another lackluster episode and it’s hard not to notice Dana Gonzales directed this one too. And Noah Hawley has three co-writers on it. Enzo Mileti, Scott Wilson, Francesca Sloane. Not sure any of them are at fault more than any of the others.

Though the one who had private hospital doctor Stephen Spencer (apparently he got the job for his Christopher Walken impression, which does not scale up to an actual performance and also isn’t a great impression anyway) talking about the Human Resources department in 1950 is at fault. That person is at fault.

The others are just along for the ride, which now includes a bunch of flashbacks. Bad flashbacks. Risible flashbacks.

The episode opens with E'myri Crutchfield’s birthday party. It’s a sad birthday party because both she and her parents have life changing secrets. Only they don’t talk about them because Crutchfield and the family aren’t at all important this episode.

We do find out Crutchfield sent an anonymous letter to Spencer about Jessie Buckley, who apparently is supposed to be so good in the show we want to see her doing bad things but no, she isn’t. At all. She’s better than Spencer but Spencer is just doing a Christopher Walken impression. Buckley’s fairly one note but at least it’s not an obvious note.

There’s some more with Jack Huston where we’re supposed to feel bad for him, which is weird. This season is very “love thy cop.” Including love overtly, devoutly racist Olyphant (unless in the “Fargo” universe Mormons are somehow different) and so on.

Chris Rock wages an offensive, leading to an effective scene with Salvatore Esposito, Karen Aldridge, and Kelsey Asbille, and a good monologue from Rock about equal rights.

There’s lots of plotting from Jason Schwartzman to get the action going, with a long sequence putting a child in danger because it’s effective no matter how cheap it comes off. Especially when they get to do a Miller’s Crossing thing with it. Seriously, they should’ve just called it “Fargo: Season Four: Miller’s Crossing: Season One.” Especially once they, you know, lift the some trailer action from Miller’s for this episode.

Sean Fortunato’s a standout performance here.

Ben Whishaw gets another big sequence here and he’s fine. He’s not a failure. So much of “Fargo” is a failure whenever something doesn’t go well, it seems like an achievement. But it’s just not bad.

The ending “teaser” involves Buckley and an abject eye-roll.

Oh. And the ghosts are back.

Blah.

Fargo (2014) s04e05 – The Birthplace of Civilization

Until the end of the episode—which brings in the Fargo theme fully for the first time—everything is character revelation and potentially development. Oh.

And a Trump reference.

The Trump reference is really bad.

The most character revelation revolves around dirty cop Jack Huston. We find out from Chris Rock some of his back story—while Huston has got the cops cracking heads and stealing the Black mob’s money—and then more later when Huston is telling Timothy Olyphant about it. See, Rock really hurt Huston’s feelings and you need to be nice to the dirty cop because he’s white and has a sad backstory.

Maybe it’d be better if Huston were better. Instead, once again, Olyphant’s got to hold up their scenes with his good but very broad character.

Olyphant gets a little more to do than usual; he threatens teenager E'myri Crutchfield later in the episode to find out where outlaw aunt Karen Aldridge is holed up and Crutchfield’s got to make a choice. Simultaneously (basically), her parents have to make the same choice because they owe Rock. Anji White’s getting ready for Crutchfield’s birthday that evening and it all goes to crap thanks to Andrew Bird not being smart about paying off loan sharks.

It provides an effective scene for Rock, who’s really amping up the villain status here, complete with yelling at his wife and mother about being the man of the house or something. But it’s not, like, good. It works, it’s effective, but it’s not good drama.

Similarly the stuff with Crutchfield and Aldridge is somewhat pointless. Aldridge and girlfriend Kelsey Asbille tell Crutchfield all about the outlaw life and why it’s not like being a criminal and it’s not bad. Asbille’s not good but Aldridge is able to carry their scenes and this one’s no different. But it doesn’t really add up to anything. Maybe someday Crutchfield will be an outlaw too. Or not. We’ll either find out or they’ll drop it.

Salvatore Esposito gets a good monologue about what’s wrong with Americans. It’s amid a bad scene—director Dana Gonzales does a rather bad job of directing this episode. There are painfully obvious tropes and no understanding of them.

Glynn Turman gets a decent monologue but it’s opposite Gaetano Bruno, who’s got an exceedingly one note character even if Bruno’s okay enough at it.

The episode’s got its effective moments—Turman, Crutchfield facing off against Olyphant, Rock threatening people—but they’re all pretty shallow.

There’s a big development at the end and it seems like “Fargo: Season Four” just has to be getting going now. Even though last episode promised this one would be the second act kick-off. Instead it’s more first act stuff.

Like… Gonzales’s direction is really not good. Not just for “Fargo” but for directing. I don’t know. The further the season gets along the less likely it seems it’ll prove my concerns unjustified.