Zodiac: The Best Movie of 2006 That Really Came Out in 2007
(***** out of 5)
I didn't come up with a Top 10 list of films last year, partly because I didn't see nearly as many as I did in prior years, but more because none of them really got my editorial juices flowing. I suppose I'd have put "The Departed" at the top, albeit with serious reservations -- it's a very very good film, but not among Scorcese's best -- and there were a handful of others I have pleasant opinions of. But I kept waiting for a film that would, as Peter Travers would say, pin me to my seat and render me thunderstruck when I left the theater. Unfortunately, in 2006, that never happened.
Now, just more than two months into the new year, it finally has.
"Zodiac" is a mesmerizing tour de force, a wholly absorbing mind-fuck of a movie that will play with your head and leave no doubt of David Fincher's directorial prowess. He's toned down the cinematic pyrotechnics of his earlier works ("Seven" and "Fight Club" among them) and turned out an expansive yet drum-tight mystery.
I will neither bore nor spoil you with a plot synopsis; just read the Wikipedia entry on the Zodiac killer and you'll be presented with the same material you'll get from the film.
But if you go in expecting a gritty, serial killer whodunit (like "Dirty Harry," which this film references), you will be disappointed. This is a long movie, about 160 minutes. There are plotlines that lead nowhere, pieces of information that may or may not mean anything, and Fincher takes his time exploring all of them for what they are. To his credit, though, he's able to juggle all of that, as well as his enormous, Altman-esque cast (this film is a veritable orgy of That Guys), without allowing the pace to suffer. I only looked at my watch once, about two hours in, to see how much time remained. Not because I was bored, mind you, but to see how much longer I'd be able to stay immersed in Fincher's dizzying world of dark humor and bewilderment.
It's not revealing anything to say the Zodiac killer has never been caught. In fact, I think your enjoyment of the film is only enhanced by the knowledge that you won't receive a satisfying payoff here. Don't waste energy expecting a cathartic arrest and instead focus on the details. Admire how Fincher nails the 1970s, from the wardrobes to the Watergate-like levels of tabloid conspiracy that defined the decade. Revel in the top-notch cast bringing its collective A-game (particularly Robert Downey Jr., at his wily best here). The movie also looks spectacular, thanks to the cinematography of Harris Savides and Fincher's always-imaginative flourishes in direction.
It's not a perfect film. Character is sometimes compromised in lieu of maintaining the frenetic pace (Chloe Sevigny, for one, does all she can with an underwritten role), and there are times when Fincher might tread closely to manipulation, notably in one scene involving Roger Rabbit that ratchets up the tension in a way that no other scene does, leaving you to wonder if you've just been played. I'm also on the fence about the end, a rather redundant stab at closure that belies the point of the entire film.
But that's minor quibbling. I haven't seen a film as consistently inspired or as thought-provoking since 2004's "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." I believe "Zodiac" is destined to become a classic of the psychological thriller genre, joining the ranks of "The Silence of the Lambs" and Fincher's own "Seven."
Do be sure to see it.
I didn't come up with a Top 10 list of films last year, partly because I didn't see nearly as many as I did in prior years, but more because none of them really got my editorial juices flowing. I suppose I'd have put "The Departed" at the top, albeit with serious reservations -- it's a very very good film, but not among Scorcese's best -- and there were a handful of others I have pleasant opinions of. But I kept waiting for a film that would, as Peter Travers would say, pin me to my seat and render me thunderstruck when I left the theater. Unfortunately, in 2006, that never happened.
Now, just more than two months into the new year, it finally has.
"Zodiac" is a mesmerizing tour de force, a wholly absorbing mind-fuck of a movie that will play with your head and leave no doubt of David Fincher's directorial prowess. He's toned down the cinematic pyrotechnics of his earlier works ("Seven" and "Fight Club" among them) and turned out an expansive yet drum-tight mystery.
I will neither bore nor spoil you with a plot synopsis; just read the Wikipedia entry on the Zodiac killer and you'll be presented with the same material you'll get from the film.
But if you go in expecting a gritty, serial killer whodunit (like "Dirty Harry," which this film references), you will be disappointed. This is a long movie, about 160 minutes. There are plotlines that lead nowhere, pieces of information that may or may not mean anything, and Fincher takes his time exploring all of them for what they are. To his credit, though, he's able to juggle all of that, as well as his enormous, Altman-esque cast (this film is a veritable orgy of That Guys), without allowing the pace to suffer. I only looked at my watch once, about two hours in, to see how much time remained. Not because I was bored, mind you, but to see how much longer I'd be able to stay immersed in Fincher's dizzying world of dark humor and bewilderment.
It's not revealing anything to say the Zodiac killer has never been caught. In fact, I think your enjoyment of the film is only enhanced by the knowledge that you won't receive a satisfying payoff here. Don't waste energy expecting a cathartic arrest and instead focus on the details. Admire how Fincher nails the 1970s, from the wardrobes to the Watergate-like levels of tabloid conspiracy that defined the decade. Revel in the top-notch cast bringing its collective A-game (particularly Robert Downey Jr., at his wily best here). The movie also looks spectacular, thanks to the cinematography of Harris Savides and Fincher's always-imaginative flourishes in direction.
It's not a perfect film. Character is sometimes compromised in lieu of maintaining the frenetic pace (Chloe Sevigny, for one, does all she can with an underwritten role), and there are times when Fincher might tread closely to manipulation, notably in one scene involving Roger Rabbit that ratchets up the tension in a way that no other scene does, leaving you to wonder if you've just been played. I'm also on the fence about the end, a rather redundant stab at closure that belies the point of the entire film.
But that's minor quibbling. I haven't seen a film as consistently inspired or as thought-provoking since 2004's "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." I believe "Zodiac" is destined to become a classic of the psychological thriller genre, joining the ranks of "The Silence of the Lambs" and Fincher's own "Seven."
Do be sure to see it.
posted by Mike at 10:55 PM
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