Script To Screen: “Fargo”

Here is a terrific scene from a terrific movie, the 1996 film Fargo, screenplay by Ethan Coen and Joel Coen for which they won an Academy Award.

Setup: Carl (Steve Buscemi) and Grimsrud (Peter Stormare), who have kidnapped Jean (Kristin Rudrüd) and stashed her in the back seat of their car, are driving on a North Dakota highway when something happens…

INT. CAR Carl drives. Grimsrud smokes and gazes out the window.
From the back seat we hear whimpering. Grimsrud turns to look. Jean lies bound and curled on the back seat underneath a
tarpaulin. GRIMSRUD
Shut the fuck up or I'll throw
you back in the trunk, you know. CARL
Geez. That's more'n I've heard
you say all week. Grimsrud stares at him, then turns back to the window. At a loud WHOOP Carl starts and looks back out the rear
window. Fifty yards behind a state trooper has turned on
his gumballs. Carl eases the car onto the shoulder. CARL
Ah, shit, the tags... Grimsrud looks at him. CARL
... It's just the tags. I never
put my tags on the car. Don't
worry, I'll take care of this. He looks into the back seat as the car bounces and slows on
the gravel shoulder. CARL
... Let's keep still back there,
lady, or we're gonna have to, ya
know, to shoot ya. Grimsrud stares at Carl. CARL
... Hey! I'll take care of this! Both cars have stopped. Carl looks up at the rear-view
mirror. The trooper is stopped on the shoulder just behind them,
writing in his citation book. Carl watches. We hear the trooper's door open. The trooper walks up the shoulder, one hand resting lightly
on top of his holster, his breath steaming in the cold night
air. Carl opens his window as the trooper draws up. CARL
How can I help you, officer? The trooper scans the inside of the car, taking his time. Grimsrud smokes and gazes calmly out his window. Finally: TROOPER
This is a new car, then, sir? CARL
It certainly is, officer. Still
got that smell! TROOPER
You're required to display
temporary tags, either in the
plate area or taped inside the
back window. CARL
Certainly - TROOPER
Can I see your license and
registration please? CARL
Certainly. He reaches for his wallet. CARL
... I was gonna tape up the
temporary tag, ya know, to be
in full compliance, but it, uh,
it, uh ... must a slipped my
mind... He extends his wallet toward the trooper, a folded fifty-
dollar bill protruding from it. CARL
... So maybe the best thing
would be to take care of that,
right here in Brainerd. TROOPER
What's this, sir? CARL
That's my license and regis-
tration. I wanna be in
compliance. He forces a laugh. CARL
... I was just thinking I could
take care of it right here. In
Brainerd. The policeman thoughtfully pats the fifty into the billfold
and hands the billfold back into the car. TROOPER
Put that back in your pocket,
please. Carl's nervous smile fades. TROOPER
... And step out of the car,
please, sir. Grimsrud, smiling thinly, shakes his head. There is a whimpering sound. The policeman hesitates. Another sound. The policeman leans forward into the car, listening. Grimsrud reaches across Carl, grabs the trooper by the hair
and slams his head down onto the car door. The policeman grunts, digs awkwardly for footing outside and
throws an arm for balance against the outside of the car. With his free hand, Grimsrud pops the glove compartment. He
brings a gun out and reaches across Carl and shoots - BANG -
into the back of the trooper's head. Jean screams. GRIMSRUD
Shut up. He releases the policeman. The policeman's head slides out the window and his body
flops back onto the street. Carl looks out at the cop in the road. CARL
(softly)
Whoa... Whoa, Daddy. Grimsrud takes the trooper's hat off of Carl's lap and sails
it out the open window. GRIMSRUD
You'll take care of it. Boy, you
are smooth smooth, you know. CARL
Whoa, Daddy. Jean, for some reason, screams again. Then stops. GRIMSRUD
Clear him off the road. CARL
Yeah. He gets out.

Here is the movie version of the scene:

It never ceases to amaze me how close scenes in the Coens’ movies hew to the script. Almost word for word the same. They figure out exactly what they want at the script stage, then translate it almost verbatim to the screen.

I’ll see you in comments for a discussion of this scene from Fargo.

One of the single best things you can do to learn the craft of screenwriting is to read the script while watching the movie. After all a screenplay is a blueprint to make a movie and it’s that magic of what happens between printed page and final print that can inform how you approach writing scenes. That is the purpose of Script to Screen, a weekly series on GITS where we analyze a memorable movie scene and the script pages that inspired it.

For more articles in the Script To Screen series, go here.