Approaching David Fincher's latest creation put an ache in the pit of my stomach. On one hand, I eagerly anticipate anything that he creates, and he has not disappointed my yet (yes, including Alien3). I avoided reading any full reviews, yet I found it impossible to avoid all discussion of the film, and the discussions I found seemed to be split between the extremes. One of the biggest factors seemed to be an excessive running time of 16o minutes (which I also read was cut down from the original cut which ran over three hours), another big one was that there was little action making it feel more A&E and less HBO. Well, my wanting to see this overrode any qualms I may have had, and I have to say that I am glad that I did.
Zodiac is marketed as a serial killer thriller, yet that is not quite right. It is based on the true story of a killer who dubbed himself the Zodiac, and killed an unknown number of people over a long period of time, during which he would send letters confessing to the crimes, along with ciphers, to the newspapers. Essentially giving the police the clues to come with arm's reach of discovering him, yet far enough away that they never actually have a clue as to his true identity. Now I am going to say something that gives thought to what it may be like to be under siege such as the city of San Fancisco was, and also the film's biggest weakness. To live through something like this has to be absolutely terrifying, think about knowing that a killer is out there, brazen enough to tease those looking for him. The drawback in the film is that it never strays from those reporters and detectives who are working the case, we don't get to the people and the fear that they had to have been feeling.David Fincher has taken the serial killer film and put a different spin on it. This is not an action film about the detective hot on the trailer of the killer, nor is it about the star trying to avoid becoming the killer's next victim. What it is, is an accomplished procedural that by all definition should be a dull and boring affair, yet this one is different. Many characters are juggled, the timeline covers decades, and no conclusion is ever reached. The last bit we already knew, as the Zodiac killings were never solved, with the SFPD declaring the case inactive in 2002.
There is amazing attention to detail. The bulk of the film takes place in the 1970's, an era before computers were as ubiquitus as they are now, and investigative/reporting techniques were just a little bit different than they are now. We watch as the main players are sucked into the drama, consumed with finding the killer that is making fun of their efforts.Being a procedural, and a complete stickler for details doesn't allow for the visual kinetics that are something of a trademark in Fincher's films. However, that does not mean that this is a bland looking film, this is Fincher doing mainstream, which is better than mainstream, there is still room for some visual flourishes, and even making a static shot of a conversation interesting to watch.
Carrying the film along its straight forward narrative are a trio of characters, whose stories weave together forming this tapestry through time. First up is Robert Downey Jr. as crime beat reporter Paul Avery, a cocky writer who finds himself personally threatened by the killer and becomes so obssessed with finding him that it costs him his job and drives him to the bottom of a bottle. Working in conjunction and parallel to Avery is Jake Gyllenhaal's Robert Graysmith (the man who wrote the novel upon which the film is based), a cartoonist and puzzle aficionado who becomes enamored with the ciphers, and, by default, the case. His life becomes consumed with finding the killer, he never lets it go, at the expense of his family. Lastly, there is the police detective who gets as close as humanly possible to solving the case. All of the performance's are solid, with Downey Jr. nearly stealing all of his scenes.Taking the runtime into consideration, I was amazed at how focused the story was. You would think that, with all of those minutes, you would expect some sidetracking. However, it never happens, the script remains squarely focused on the various angles of investigation. It is that focus that I believe helps those 160 minutes feel like much fewer. I was drawn in and engrossed in the story, fascinated by the personalities involved.
Bottomline. Despite the lack of outside touches, this is a movie that delivers the goods. It is an engrossing twist on the serial killer genre. It is highlighted by a tight script, effective editing, and good performances. This is another winner for David Fincher, and a fascinating turn into the way a life can be consumed with the search for the truth, and the procedures employed in that search, a personal procedural, if you will. Methodically paced, but never slow, despite the lack of gunfights, car chases, and explosions, creating a more intellectual journey.
Highly Recommended.
Despite the obvious connections to The Cure or Bauhaus, Night Kills the Day stands apart. The five piece have crafted a mature, and layered experience that has a certain New York feel. A wide breadth of experience in the city they call home, all compiled in a scant 35 minutes of music.
Before we get started, and this is for you wrestling fans, when you look at the poster, do you see Mark Calloway? When you approach the prospect of watching this, and this is for you Jim Carrey fans, are you ready for a Jim Carrey that is decidedly different than the Jim Carrey you know and love? This is a very different role than we have ever seen Carrey play before, and I do not think that it is a stretch to think that many may not want to see him in it. Look at what happened with Cable Guy, yes it was a comical movie, but it was considerably darker than anything he had done prior, and I do not think the public (generally speaking) wanted to see it. Now, some years have passed, and Carrey has done some more dramatic work, but is still primarily a comedian. Now here we have him starring in a film, a thriller, where he plays a man obsessed with a number. Very different, indeed.
OK, I don't know what that was all about, but needless to say, I had to see it. My birthday falls on a 23, so there is my in. Now whether or not the movie is actually good is a completely different matter. As I left the theater I felt conflicted, there were things to like about it, things not to like about it, and much to feel non-committal about. Is it good? Sort of, but it could have been so much better.
The main problem with the film is that it plays with some ideas that don't pay off in the end, for example, the dog. I found the dog to be an annoying recurrence, I know it was necessary for the first encounter, but the returns to the animal and the guys at the cemetery feel like a failed thread. There are a few instances of directions that feel incomplete, unfulfilled. Then, when the climax rolled around, I felt like I had seen it before, and it just seemed like a rush job, like the writers were unsure how to resolve it, and forgetting to include the number in its twist, making the number inconsequential as anything more than a device to display Walter's increasing instability. The resulting finish dragged down all the good things that had peppered the prior hour.
What can I say? This is a dumb movie, funny, but dumb. If you like the television show, you are most likely going to like the movie. For the rest of the cinema going public, your threshold for dumb comedy, lack of plot, and sheer zaniness will have to be assessed prior to entering the darkened theater. This is a movie not about plot, or about any type of social message, it is about watching these inept police officers muddle their way through and somehow get everything right in the end. Think of it as a Police Academy for a new generation.
The story, such as it is, has the Reno Sheriff's Department invited to a convention in Miami. Of course, they did nothing to merit the invite, as all of the Sheriff's Departments were asked to attend. Still, this is a momentous occasion for the group. They head off to enjoy some fun in the sun, but before they can get their passes straightened out, the convention hall is the victim of a chemical attack. This leaves the Reno gang as the only police force outside of the building able to patrol the city and keep order. While they do their best to keep the city safe, they are also involved with finding those responsible for the attack at the convention.
If you are a fan of the show, you already know what to expect. The gang shows their complete ineptitude as crime fighters in a number of different ways, from their inability to operate the latest crime fighting equipment, to their questionable dealing with an alligator, to run ins with Paul Rudd doing a delightfully bad impression of Al Pacino doing Scarface.
In recent years there has been something that has been conspicuously absent from the Hollywood horror factory. That missing element is genuine creepiness. Most of the horror films that reach our screens fall into one of two categories, first are the sanitized PG-13 rated affairs that survive on jump scares, the others fall into the so-called area of "torture porn" along the lines of Saw. It is that which makes this movie stand out, it is genuinely creepy, it makes you wonder what exactly is going to happen, and even though I haven't completely pieced the ending together, The Abandoned successfully sidesteps the current penchant for torture and over-reliance on jumps to create its atmosphere of dread.
The Abandoned is a haunted house story at its heart, and it wastes no time getting down to telling its tale of a life long fate that is about to be set right. It begins its story 40 years ago somewhere in Russia. A beat up old truck arrives at a small farmhouse, as the family patriarch approaches the truck, clutching a shotgun, he is unsure who is inside, dreading the worst. He opens the door to reveal a woman, bloody and near death, with a pair of babies on the sea next to her. Fast forward to the present day, we are introduced to Marie, am American film producer who has spent her life attempting to track down her roots, as she had been adopted as a young girl. Her search leads her to Russia, where we are left to make the simple connection that she was one of the babies in the opening scene.
I could go on about the plot, but what fun would that be for you? This is a movie that gradually reveals itself until the big finish. Along the way, you are sucked into her world, trapped within the house with a secret.
This is one creepy movie. The rundown house, where much of the action takes place, is a living, breathing entity, intent on playing its role in keeping the siblings there. It has not been alone all these years, as the grounds are being roamed by ghostly entities, one bearing a striking resemblance to Marie, and you know what they say, when you see yourself, death is right around the corner. Will Marie be able to fend off what may be coming?
This week's pick features a little seen, at least to this point of his career, Will Ferrell. It is a film that employs a well written script that is more about its subtleties than the usual in your face style of Ferrell. The film is Stranger Than Fiction. It is a movie which lives up to its title, telling a story that is touching, and is stranger than fiction.
Going to a concert solely populated by local bands can be a questionable affair. Honestly, how many times have you gone to a local show only to be confronted with some of the most awful "music" you've ever heard? I have had moments like this, never a complete show, mind you, but there are a lot of bad bands out there. However, you have to realize that your favorite bands have to come from somewhere, and that is the local scene, your local scene, so you have to go out and find the good ones. Believe me, there are good ones out there, and when you hear them, you will wonder why they are local, they can be that good. What does that have to do with this show? Well, this was one of those shows where the stars aligned, a local show that was stacked with talent determined to put on the best show they could. You could see the determination in the face of everyone that took that stage. Were they all successful? No. The show was not perfect, but few are. Still, this was a local show to restore faith in the local scene.