Gone Girl (***½)
Directed by: David Fincher
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil
Patrick Harris, Tyler Perry, Carrie Coon, Kim Dickens, Patrick Fugit, Casey
Wilson, Missi Pyle, Sela Ward, Emily Ratajkowski
Seen: October 12th 2014
***½ Out of ****
True to form for a David Fincher movie,
Gone Girl is dark and moody with a pervasively haunting undertone. David Fincher has always made his movies like this,
with a mature subtext in nearly every moment coupled with an extremely striking
visual hue that only enhances the feel of dread; imbuing the movie almost with
a sense of dark reverence for a very intriguing story very well-told. The
visual feel is similar to Fincher’s other movies, in my mind most notably The Social Network and The Game, and
Fincher draws very expressive yet subtle performances from his cast, some of them cast well outside their typical
playgrounds.
Nick Dunne (Affleck) returns home and concludes
that his wife Amy (Pike) is missing on their
fifth wedding anniversary when he finds overturned and shattered furniture in
their living room. As news of her disappearance gains traction, the story
becomes a news sensation, and circumstantial evidence starts
pointing to Dunne for having murdered his wife. Detective Rhonda Boney
(Dickens) and her partner Officer James Gilpin (Fugit) start investigating and
they find some startling and confusing evidence that contradicts Dunne’s
statements of innocence. Cable talk show host Ellen Abbott (Pyle)
trash talks Dunne, inciting public venom, and when Amy’s best friend (whom Dunne has never heard of), Noelle Hawthorne (Wilson),
also starts publicly shaming Dunne for his treatment of Amy, and thus his trouble is complete. And deep.
Nick however maintains his innocence, and
the viewer wants to believe him. His sister Margo (Coon) supports and harbours
him, telling him that she loves him even if he did it (she was not a big fan of
Amy’s). Nick’s problem is that the evidence heaps up and other actions from him
does not paint a very flattering picture, but rather one of a relatively awful
person, as he is even shown to welcome his mistress Andie (Ratajkowski) for an
intimate night in his own sister’s house, in the living room. There is however
far more to the story than all this, and Dunne finally decides to approach the
infamous criminal defence lawyer Tanner Bolt (Perry) for assistance. Almost
halfway through the movie a brilliantly
orchestrated and massive story reveal shakes things up completely, and
from here on out all bets are off.
Both Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike do a terrific
job of bringing to life a
picture perfect couple with deep problems in their marriage. Their very
romantic love story is told in flashbacks that slowly turn grey as the story
progresses. Tyler Perry has confessed that he would not have attempted an
audition if he had known David Fincher, and that is exactly how far out of type
he is in Gone Girl, but he is great as the strongly confident lawyer; while
Neil Patrick Harris is yet another actor going completely outside of
expectations, exuding a creepy confidence as a rich bachelor with a shady past regarding
Amy.
Gone Girl is unmistakably David Fincher,
and if you have enjoyed his movies in the past (which further includes Fight
Club, Se7en, Panic Room, Zodiac, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and the
American version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), you will enjoy Gone Girl
with its dark, passive-aggressive characters occasionally lashing out to try to
achieve their sometimes extremely shady goals. The movie is two and a half
hours of brooding and engrossing story telling dragging the viewer along on a revealing
and twisting and almost harrowing road towards a difficult to accept yet very
satisfying ending. Gone Girl is well worth the price of admission, but be
well-warned, this is dark cinema, and not what some people want for a lightly
entertaining Friday evening movie. For those who don’t require that, Gone Girl
is a must see…
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