MYST #2: Gone Girl

I find David Fincher's work typically great, and his latest work, Gone Girl, is no exception.

Gone Girl follows the story of Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck), a bar-owner in a small town, and his wife, Amy (Rosamund Pike) , a former celebrity who now lives quietly with Nick. One day, she goes missing, and the signs begin to point to Nick as the cause of her disappearance. In terms of the plot, that is as far as I am going to go because this movie revolves around its ever-changing and complex narrative and revealing any more than that would possibly discourage one from going to see it. But, in short, the movie is solid, and the plot is one of the best parts. However, if I had to make one criticism of it, it is that it does not end in a satisfying or even an unsatisfying way, it just ends, I guess leaving it up to interpretation as to what follows. I read that people had problems with the ending in the book, and the author (who wrote the screenplay), Gillian Flynn, did not change it in its adaptation to film. But what the plot did remarkably well, for the first half, was not make it clear who the audience should root for (again, really not trying to spoil things), but as the movie progresses some actions made by the characters push the audience over the line and make it clear who should be punished and who we should feel bad for. The film has some great depth to it, exploring themes of the media's perception of our appearances and the subsequent public perceptions, modern marriage (I can't really relate to this), and honesty, enough to merit repeat viewings. I would like to go into some detail, but as this film came out only last week I don't even want to spoil it for Mr. D, and every scene reveals something somewhat important about where the story progresses.

David Fincher's meticulous and precise directorial style is very much present. Not his best work (I would have to agree with critics that The Social Network is the best, followed by Zodiac, and then Se7en), but one worthy of the Fincher name and perhaps will rise in my ranks over time with another viewing, which it definitely merits. The film is dark and yet well-lit, like his other films. The cinematography is clean and slick, but nothing of note. I love how he details the world so realistically, taking the extra step in setting the scene and adding extra layers of immersion to the film. One example is the subtle reflection of a character's text messaging in the reflection of her glasses, when another director would easily have cut the corner and made the actress pretend to text. The movie is very tense at parts, something I find Fincher to do best, especially with the help of a very well-suited score. Speaking of sound, that is something the film does incredibly well. The sound mixing here is something I never notice, but again with the extra layer of immersion, Fincher manages to combine realistic ambiance with audible dialogue (I would be surprised if it did not get an Oscar nomination for just that). The pacing is precise and near perfect, at 140 minutes, I was never bored and never even checked my watch. The casting here is spot-on, Affleck nails it, Pike is excellent (Oscar nom?), and the surprise performer is Tyler Perry. I hate everything about Tyler Perry, why does he put his name on his movies? I read somewhere that Perry, a director himself, did not know who David Fincher was, and because of that, almost turned down the part. But he plays his part well.

The main criticisms I have are of some instances of funky and inappropriate dialogue (odd interjections of "sweetheart" among others), some illogical repercussions to characters actions (avoid spoilers), and the ending (Again, don't want to give anything away I don't have to).

A solid thriller film with scrutinous direction, Gone Girl gets an

8.5/10 Out-of-place Ben Affleck genitals  (Seriously, why?)

Critics tend to agree with me, Rotten Tomatoes: 88%, Ave. Rating: 8/10