Thursday, January 22, 2009

David Fincher's Zodiac

David Fincher rose from humble beginnings (music videos for Madonna and Alien3) to become one of the most influential filmmakers of the decade through films like Se7en and Fight Club, but since 2002's Panic Room, he's been associated with dozens of films that never got made (or got made without him).

So, it's with some anticipation that his newest film about the Zodiac Killer is met, and it's not surprising that it perhaps doesn't meet with expectations.




In some ways, the low-key atmosphere makes the intense parts more intense, but the fidelity to actual history means there is no great climactic point—in particular, no great showdown between Graysmith and Zodiac. They do share a moment, and it's important but not really satisfying in the cinematic KABOOM sense.

Just as it doesn't meet some expectations, there are those who would over-hype it because it is a Fincher film, but it's best to approach this as a competent but modest slice-of-American-history movie. It won't actually lose much on the small screen.

Finally, some critics objected to the lack of period music: I actually thought that was one of the strongest points. Veteran David Shire (Norma Rae, All The President's Men) provides a score that's way less self-conscious and hip than, say, playing The White Album would've been. Although the story takes place in a let's-call-it-”colorful” period of history, it also transcends the time.

(originally posted 2007-03-11)


  1. Thanks for posting this. As I said, I really love this movie--despite the fact that I never really liked Se7en or Fight Club. Or Madonna. : )

    Anyway, the writer and producer of Zodiac both expected Fincher to turn them down, having already done his serial killer film with Se7en. But Fincher was very interested when he read the script, and said that he really wanted to make the "last serial killer movie." As you noted, the violence is secondary, and the movie is much more of a police procedural and deals with the effect that the crimes had on the lives of other people. There's no big climax or resolution at the end, and it really gives the viewer a good sense of how the cops must have--and still do--feel the about this case, still unsolved after all this time.

    (With all that said, the scene in the basement has to be one of the scariest I've seen.)

    (and I did NOT know he did Alien 3 which I also was not a big fan of.)

  2. Yes, I do believe it's a Fincher movie for people who don't like Fincher movies. Heh.

    The basement scene is remarkable for being so effective, a little island of terror in an otherwise cerebral movie.

  3. Hey Dirty Harry is the best Zodiac killer movie bar none.

  4. I love "Dirty Harry" but it's not even the same species as "Zodiac". There's no reasonable way to compare them.

