Attention: If you have seen Fargo, do not see New in Town. I repeat: Do not see this movie. If you liked Fargo, you’ll be disappointed that they basically replicated it, only not as well. Apparently the 13-year gap between the two films was not enough to make us forget. And if you didn’t like the Coen brothers’ comedy, then don’t see New in Town either, because odds are the same reasons you didn’t like Fargo will stand here as well.
Watching New in Town and its extras will make you sure of only one thing: you will never want to visit Minnesota. Fargo almost (almost) made you say, “Hey…I should check that town out sometime”, if only because you might think there's some chance you could end up having just as exciting an adventure (or series of ridiculous conversations). But, not New in Town. The cold looked absolutely dreadful and there was no adventure. When temperatures well below freezing, snow, blizzards, ice, frozen lakes, icicles and snow-covered-ice are your primary character in a movie, it isn’t a good thing. Location most always plays a distinct role in a movie, but it shouldn’t overshadow the actors.
The location placed in the spotlight as the cold Minnesota (they filmed in Winnipeg, Canada where it reaches temperatures of colder than 50 below) is juxtaposed against Miami. Lucy Hill (Renée Zellweger) works high up in a big Fortune 500 company (I guess we’re assuming this is taking place pre-recession) at its Miami headquarters. She spends her mornings jogging along the ocean and her days in tight suits and 4-inch Louis Vuitton heels. The food manufacturer needs an exec to make some changes at a factory in a tiny Minnesota town. Lucy offers to go, and packs a small sweater as her only protection against the winter.
The comedy in the movie mainly comes from two places: the cold and the northern accent. Luckily we only had to hear one “Doncha know?” These two types of comedy are present in Fargo as well, but aren’t the punch line--they are simply the backdrop. The bulk of their jokes come from the Coens’ famous dialogue—the awkward conversations they choreograph that are meant to garner the nervous laugh. The awkward scenarios in New in Town are just awkward.
After she becomes acquainted with her new assistant Blanche (Siobhan Fallon), she is quickly set up on a date with Ted (Harry Connick Jr.) whom she almost immediately hates, but whom turns out to be a representative from the factory workers union. She struggles to gain the trust of her employees, namely the factory foreman, Stu (J.K. Simmons). With time she gains their trust and even takes a liking to Ted. Problems arise for her new friendships when the Miami headquarters wants to shut down the plant, which will effectively oust nearly the entire town; they must work together to forge a plan that will save their jobs.
The few funny moments that saved the movie were few and far between, but it did have a few sweet scenes between Lucy and her new friends that were completely predictable, but welcomed. J.K. Simmons was great as he normally is, whether he’s playing this tubby lumberjack with a beard (he gained 40 pounds to play the role, according to the extra features), or he’s playing a tough newspaperman with a crew cut in Spider-man. Also in the cast was Frances Conroy (no, not McDormand), who played the mother in the amazing HBO series, Six Feet Under. Although she had a small role, it was nice to see her feign the northern accent and hold her own in the cast’s big line-up. That said, no one held their own against the films main character: the winter. Neither Zellweger nor Connick could top the immaculate performance given by Winnipeg, Canada for its authenticity and complete dedication to the script.
Blu-ray Bonus Features
The extra features on this Blu-ray aren't bad, although will further your reason for never visiting Minnesota or Canada in the winter. The featurettes contain interviews with the main actors, which is always nice, but literally all they talk about is the cold. Not only was it a character in the film, but clearly became a character in their lives for the duration of the filming as they essentially couldn’t remember any anecdote without mentioning the cold. It’s understandable of course, but unfortunately didn’t provide many other interesting factoids. However, the cold did generate some interesting factoids such as the fact that the camera would freeze during filming and the cast created the word “nostricles” to refer to the icicles that formed from their runny noses. See? Going to Minnesota probably isn’t on the top of your list.
"New in Town" is on sale May 26, 2009 and is rated PG. Comedy, Romance. Directed by Jonas Elmer. Written by Ken Rance, C. Jay Cox. Starring Frances Conroy, Harry Connick Jr, JK Simmons, Renee Zellweger, Siobhan Fallon.
