U are sneaky..............

Plot[edit]

In 1987, Minneapolis car salesman Jerry Lundegaard (William H. Macy) is desperate for money. Shep Proudfoot (Steve Reevis), an ex-convict, gives him a name; he travels to Fargo, North Dakota, where he hires Carl Showalter (Steve Buscemi) and Gaear Grimsrud (Peter Stormare) to kidnap his wife, Jean (Kristin Rudrüd), and ransom her for $80,000, knowing his wealthy father-in-law and boss, Wade Gustafson (Harve Presnell) will pay. In return, Lundegaard will give Showalter and Grimsrud a new 1987 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera, and half of the ransom money.

Lundegaard gets phone calls from GMAC about an unpaid loan for sold vehicles from the dealership. These are non-existent, as he is scamming GMAC. He also tries to convince Gustafson to lend him $750,000 for a real estate deal. When Gustafson shows interest, Lundegaard tries to cancel the kidnapping, but too late: Showalter and Grimsrud are driving to Minneapolis. Lundegaard then discovers Gustafson will only give him a small finder's fee.

Showalter and Grimsrud arrive in Minneapolis and kidnap Lundegaard's wife. However, on the way to their cabin hideout, they are stopped by a state trooper outside Brainerd, Minnesota. Grimsrud shoots and kills the trooper, and then shoots and kills a couple who saw the incident. The next morning, local police chief, Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand), who is seven months pregnant, investigates the homicides. After being informed that the criminals telephoned Proudfoot from the truck stop, she drives to Minneapolis. While visiting Minneapolis, Marge reconnects with an old classmate, Mike Yanagita (Steve Park), who unsuccessfully tries to seduce her during dinner.

Lundegaard contacts Gustafson and his accountant Stan Grossman (Larry Brandenburg), who at first let only Lundegaard speak to the "kidnappers". Later Gustafson decides to deal with them himself. Showalter then tells Lundegaard he must give the criminals the entire $80,000 ransom.

Showalter phones Lundegaard, demanding he make the drop that night at a parking garage. However, Gustafson drives off with the ransom in his briefcase. At the drop, he refuses to hand it over until his daughter is returned. Showalter kills Gustafson, but not before being shot in the face. Lundegaard arrives at the shooting scene and puts the body in his trunk. The next day, Showalter discovers that the briefcase contains a million dollars (the amount that Lundegaard had told Gustafson was demanded). Showalter removes $80,000 to split with Grimsrud, and buries the rest in the snow alongside the highway. On returning to the hideout, Showalter discovers that Grimsrud has killed Lundegaard's wife. The two criminals argue over the car, and Grimsrud kills Showalter.

Marge Gunderson questions Lundegaard again, and asks to speak to Gustafson. Lundegaard flees the dealership, and Marge contacts the state police. Following up on a tip, Marge drives to Moose Lake and spots the stolen car. She finds Grimsrud feeding the last of Showalter's body into a wood chipper. He tries to escape, but Marge shoots him in the leg and arrests him. Driving back, a saddened Marge asks Grimsrud why he committed the crimes, telling him, "there's more to life than a little money, you know?" Later, Lundegaard's location is traced to a motel outside Bismarck, North Dakota, where he is subdued and arrested while attempting to escape through a bathroom window.

That night, Marge Gunderson and her husband, Norm (John Carroll Lynch), sit in bed together discussing Norm's mallard painting, which has been selected as the design for a US postage stamp. Norm is disappointed that it will appear only on the 3¢ stamp, but Marge is very proud of his achievement. The two hold each other close, and mention that their child will be born in two months' time.