Not Coming to a Theater Near You
There are things you do hate, Lord. Perfume-smellin’ things, lacy things, things with curly hair.
There are things you do hate, Lord. Perfume-smellin’ things, lacy things, things with curly hair.
By avoiding the elaborate filmmaking that he has recently become renowned for executing and instead concentrating on creating the sinister mood and atmosphere that he has always expertly crafted, David Fincher delivers a different kind of serial killer film, where the most frightening moment comes from a revelation revolving around hand writing. Fincher’s latest film feels like a crime-procedural epic, yet somehow also becomes intimate enough to convey the toll that the Zodiac investigation extracts from its participants.
In detailing the damaging effects of these murders and the resulting obsession that permeates throughout the effected region (admittedly, I have a weakness for films that revolve around the notion of obsession), Zodiac may be one of the strongest contemporary films in capturing the subtle but seemingly continuous consequences of terror, or at least fear, and essentially expresses everything that Summer of Sam hoped to convey while aggressively addressing similar subject matter.
Interestingly, Fincher revisits a few familiar cinematic sequences, including an endless cascade of words seemingly signaling the unsettling unraveling of a psyche, though in this case it’s the subtle damage inflicted upon our protagonist rather than obvious evidence left behind by a mysterious murderer. Though many reports have circulated regarding the creative conflicts between Fincher and Jake Gyllenhaal during production, this may be the first film in which I’ve found Gyllenhaal to be near perfect in his performance and I hope he collaborates with Fincher in the future.
Of course, my praise of the film might also be influenced by the fact that I apparently get my hair cut by the same barber that did Mark Ruffalo’s hair.
by Chiranjit Goswami | Source: Warner Brothers 35mm Theatrical Print
07 May 2007 5:22 PM | Submit Comment
