Until the special election, Richardson will serve as the sheriff of Normal, Minnesota. He basically just shuffles papers, but weirdly, the Mayor Kibner so likes his “light touch,” he suggests making it permanent. Of course, that makes Richardson suspicious. The circumstances of his predecessor’s death are also disconcerting. That would be the late Sheriff Gunderson, just like in Fargo.
Frankly, people in town are just plain weird. They also raised millions of dollars for a new city hall and have stocked the sheriff’s office with military grade armaments. Even a substandard cop like Richardson smells something fishy, but the interim sheriff is still shocked when his own deputies start firing on him during an ill-prepared bank robbery, to prevent him from getting a good look inside the vault.
John Wick and Nobody franchise creator Derek Kolstad turns Bob Odenkirk lose to do what his anti-heroes do best. If you like those movies, you will enjoy Normal too. Arguably, it is more conventional than Wheatley’s previous films (Kill List, Sightseers, A Field in England, etc.), but he gleefully cranks up the violent mayhem to deranged levels.
However, Kolstad and Wheatley also invest heavily early on to fully establish Richardson as a character, so he wears increasingly comfortably over the course of the film, like an old sweater. Odenkirk was also perfectly cast, because he deftly balances the temp-sheriff’s amiability with his sarcasm and sadness. Seriously, Richardson also has franchise potential. Maybe the next movie could take place in a town named “Decent.”
