Normal 4K 2025

The episode opens with an upbeat cover of Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid” in Japanese—the Yakuza punishes three negligent henchmen. Instead of traditional harakiri, they’re subjected to a semi-voluntary amputation of the distal phalanx of a finger, though for one of them, the childish trick of making his pinky disappear didn’t quite work out. Then an introduction from the boss: Normal, Minnesota...

And here we have a typical small town in single-story America, with a cold climate and the telling name of Normal, where at first glance everything is quiet and peaceful, and the biggest problem might be an argument over the price of goods, or the wrong color of yarn that was delivered, or even a moose stealing paint. It is precisely this kind of town—cozy at first glance, with Cersei Lannister herself (noticeably aged) at the local bar—that falls under the jurisdiction of the interim sheriff, who bears a striking resemblance to Saul Goodman. True, his predecessor—whom he is, in fact, temporarily replacing until the next election—passed away under rather strange circumstances. But the friendliness of the residents—and in particular the local mayor—distracts our hero from dark thoughts. He just needs to quietly and peacefully serve out his eight weeks (occasionally tormented by nightmares of the past at night), and he clearly has no intention of causing a ruckus. Off-screen, we hear him speaking into his wife’s answering machine—words that strongly resemble the letters our friend Sukhov wrote to his beloved Katerina Matveyevna...

It would seem, what could possibly go wrong and throw Normal off balance? But a pair of hapless local bank robbers unwittingly opens the town’s Pandora’s box, exposing its rather significant secret—and it becomes clear just what the Yakuza has to do with it all. That’s when everything is turned upside down. Our laid-back sheriff finds himself in a trap, but he’ll have to defend himself against people he didn’t expect. And just like that, this measured detective story set in a quiet American backwater suddenly turns into *Assault on the 13th Precinct*, spiced up with lively and inventive action mixed with dark humor.

Bob Odenkirk is excellent in his role. The last time we saw him play a sheriff was in the first season of *Fargo*, where his character was, to put it mildly, dim-witted. Here, however, it’s exactly the opposite, and there’s no doubting his professional competence. Despite his apparent simplicity, the stand-in sheriff is sharp and resourceful, and in the difficult situation that arises, he unhesitatingly takes the side dictated by his conscience rather than by self-interest.

Despite its not-always-serious tone, the chaos is rife with bloody and unpredictable violence.
Even knitting needles are put to use. The chaotic rhythm probably only serves to enhance the action. Moments in the spirit of *Destination*, for example, like the champagne cork in the Yakuza scene, only fuel the black humor, which, incidentally, is used in just the right measure here. The narrative, however, doesn’t—or hardly—descend into outright chaos (I’m referring to the final mess).

It’s hard to single out any one antagonist, since the lady with the braid takes them out in chaotic order, and they sometimes don’t even have time to reveal themselves. By the way, the name of the Yakuza boss that the fingerless Asian man uses to scare everyone is “Oyaban,” but in our translation, the letters “o” and “ya” consistently sound like “u” and “e.” The standard runtime works in the film’s favor. There’s no time to get bored. The brisk pace of the second half is skillfully punctuated by brief moments of respite.

The director is known for the high-octane *Shootout* and the senseless *Shark* sequel starring Statham. But here, he’s managed to create a decent, entertaining movie for an evening—one that shouldn’t be taken too seriously.