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Plot:
As a serial killer terrifies the San Francisco Bay Area and taunts police with his ciphers and letters, investigators in four jurisdictions search for the murderer. The case will become an obsession f...( read more
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Zodiac Recent Reviews
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Recent Reviews
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MCT:November 25, 2008
Probably as good a film as could ever be made on the subject, it still came across to me as being a bit overhyped. Solid yes, but not spectacular. After a while I could start predicting scenes before they occurred. That's probably more my fault than anything. At any rate, it's worth watching, even for people who don't usually care for such material. It's good adult entertainment in the best sense of the term "adult".
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MCT:November 5, 2008Zodiac isn't just a film about the Bay Area's Zodiac killer of the late '60's and early '70's. It's a film about the men that become obsessed with finding and understanding the killer. The film follows two cops (Dermot Mulroney and Anthony Edwards), a reporter (Robert Downey, Jr.) and a cartoonist (Jake Gyllenhaal) who all become wrapped up in the Zodiac murders and the obsession that comes with the hunt.
What's interesting about Zodiac is that it shows how each of the four deal with the neverending case with the story mainly focused on Mulroney and Gyllenhaal's characters. The cop is obsessed with duty and catching the perp. The cartoonist is obsessed with the case as almost a sick hobby that ends up totally consuming his life.
Directed by David Fincher, who gave us the great Fight Club, Zodiac is a dark tale that shows a San Francisco that will quickly remind you of Don Siegel's version of the city in Dirty Harry (the film was based on the Zodiac case and makes an appearance in this film). But in the end the film is about the people that had to deal with the case and the toll that years of searching and loose ends takes on people for a long period of time. Sure, Zodiac can be creepy at times, but it's also a dark people piece finely acted by the cast. -
MCT:November 4, 2008"I... I Need to know who he is. I... I need to stand there, I need to look him in the eye and I need to know that it's him."
Arguably the most underrated (read: zero Academy Award nominations) film of the fantastic year of 2007, Zodiac is quite possibly David Fincher's most mature film ever. I always thought of Fincher as a concept director; his films are always cool because he exploits the possibilities of unique scenarios - Se7en, with serial killings attached to the seven capital sins; Fight Club, with that underground organization and its revolutionary ideas; the underwhelming Panic Room, that happens within the confines of a residence made unique by the existence of a security room. All these films are carried by their concepts rather than by involving or thought-provoking narratives and characters.
In Zodiac, Fincher has finally gotten past the juvenilia of concept films. Moreover, trademark Fincher visual touches were outgrown or perhaps have evolved into something more substantial, more pertinent. Those flowing mobile shots (mostly from the perspective of inanimate objects) have been sprinkled in Fincher's entire filmography, yet only in Zodiac do they acquire a meaning that goes beyond the statement of "cool." For example, when Fincher's camera follows the mail-cart through the San Francisco Chronicle's offices, it doesn't evoke that annoying feeling of mere gimmickry but instead, carries with it the implication of the mobility and perpetuality of communication, and its after-effects on society.
There are four characters to take note of in Zodiac. The first is the serial killer who calls himself Zodiac, whose ominous frame we barely see at the film's first violent murder; shooting with absolute gusto and delight, absent any remorse or conscious or intelligent effort to finish off the murder he started. The second is cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal) who works for the San Francisco Chronicle and considers reading and books (which are practically the same thing) as his diversions in life. The third is Inspector David Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) who is tasked, along with his long-time partner William Armstrong (Anthony Edwards) to solve the Zodiac killings. The fourth character is the most memorable one, columnist Paul Avery (Robert Downey, Jr.), news writer for the Chronicle.
Through these four characters, Fincher delineates humanity's capability to obsess, which is practically what Zodiac is all about. The serial killer is compelled to traverse the lengths of California to murder innocent victims; particularly obsessed with the idea stolen from the classic 1932 film The Most Dangerous Game. That perception that humanity is both the hunter and the hunted compels him to play both roles; first, by seeking out easy victims and second, by planting clues and inviting participants (through the media) in his own hunt where he is the clever prey.
The participants in the serial killer's game are of course, the police and the amateur detective who gets so pre-occupied with the puzzle that it becomes an unhealthy obsession - quite possibly equal to that of the Zodiac killer. The opportunist in the entire endeavour is Paul Avery, who claims the entire Zodiac fiasco as his journalistic masterpiece - there's no intention to solve the mystery, just enough fuel to get his monopoly on the enterprise going. Through the interplay of these great obsessions, a phenomenon is created; one in which the media, the police, the perpetrators, and the general public are intertwined in genuine confusion and paranoia.
It's all brilliant stuff and Fincher tries his best not to overdo the brilliance. Every thing's kept in an air of vagueness; It keeps you uneasy and in constant wonder if the Zodiac mystery has been solved, or if there really is a Zodiac killer, or are the presumptions that there is a single killer and the clues connect with each other a mere result of red tape, creativity, and self-assured conclusions.
There's no actual resolution in the mysteries of the Zodiac killer (not in a legal or factual way), although it seems that the four characters' obsessions have been resolved in various denominations. The paranoia has faded but the legacy of the killer floats in the infinite world of media and communication, to the satisfaction of the hunt-crazed killer. While watching the film, I realized how amazing it was that the actual man who murdered those people and sent those letters might have actually been seated in an theatre somewhere watching this film.
The expected lavish Fincher brutality is used effectively here, as we see most of the killings in their frightening detail, and probably none more unsettling than the murder of a young couple by a lake in broad daylight. However, Fincher mostly breaks free of his usual atmosphere to create a doggedly realistic true-crime story. The details flood in in a seemingly random order, and the depiction of police procedure and back-room discussions among newspaper staff are deliberate, careful, and believable. Besides, Fincher's subject is not ultimately the violence of the crimes, but how the case comes to shake the public and envelop the lives of the cops and reporters who have become ensnared in solving the mysteries and soothing the public's apprehensions - none suffering the effects more clearly than Graysmith. He goes from being a bright-eyed, clumsy back-office lackey to a jumpy, haunted shadow of a man.
Zodiac is also about how the killer craftily uses the mass media to amplify the awful impact of his crimes, as well as their shocking randomness, to the point where it's not even certain if all the crimes he is taking credit for are his - an idea that bears a lot of resonance in our information age. He transforms himself into a legend, an intangible, imaginative figure of brutality and evil, and hence becomes even more uncatchable.
Finally, Fincher's intensely controlled stylistic flourishes perfectly re-create the pre-digital age of the 1970s - the cars, the architecture, the music, the casual smoking in bars. Fincher exercises such strong control over plot, style, and pacing that Zodiac almost feels a bit stuffy at times, but his perfectionism works rivetingly for the most part, the ornate style and the step-by-step realism of the storytelling, the gruesome murders and their psychologically elaborate aftermath and the nifty media-age commentary resulting in an uncommonly skilful and absorbing story of obsession, murder, and real mystery.
The performances (excepting my Gyllenhaal quibbles) are across-the-board fantastic, and there are both scares and suspense aplenty, even for those already fairly familiar with the case. More than that, though, Fincher has made a film about real murders that delivers those chills without sensationalizing or trivializing the victims. They are acknowledged as real people and given respect; one of the film's stand-out scenes - the murder of Cecelia Shepard and attempted murder of Bryan Hartnell - does so much to humanize those two people and make them authentic and complex that it could stand on its own as a brilliantly observant short film. It's a rare treat, for those of us fascinated by true-crime stories while somewhat embarrassed by that predilection, to walk out of a film about a serial killer and feel not ashamed but as though we may just have seen an honest-to-God work of art. -
MCT:October 21, 2008
A landmark film of this genre. The Godfather of detective movies. You cant help but be hooked. A jolting and memerising movie. A cool, hip, stylish and terifficly compelling thriller. It's mind-teasing and absolutely sensational. Director, David Fincher has crafted yet another brilliant and nail-biting thriller. It has an amasing all-star cast that give strong and captivating performances. Mark Ruffalo is excellent. Jake Gyllenhal is remarkable. Robert Downy Jr. is teriffic. A masterpiece. A great story that will keep you on the edge of your seat right till the very end. Filled with pulse-pounding excitment and blood-curldling thrills. Great entertainment you can cut with a knife. An incrediable experiance that makes you feel like your right there.
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MCT:September 24, 2008
The subtle attention to detail and the nuances in the performances are the stuff that only a filmmaker like David Fincher could create.
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MCT:January 7, 2009
In my humble opinion, this is the most underrated film of 2007. I don't know about anyone else, but like the characters that got obsessed with Zodiac, I'm glued to this film from the beginning 'til the end.
Comments
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GoodPossumposted 335 days ago -
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This wasn't very good, i acutally stopped watching half way through cause it was so boring!
posted 440 days ago -
Fincher's worst.
Very ambitious, but flawed. Scenes are mishandled, have the wrong tone, and have bad acting. Their are some bright spots though.
As usual in a Fincher the cinematography and editing are top-notch. Gyllenhaal is kinda bland in the beginning, but comed alive and is great in the last hour and a half. Robert Downey Jr. turns in another great performance. Mark Ruffalo is great as well. John Carroll Lynch and Brian Cox also make the most of their appearances. Plus, the film has two of the most terrifying sequences I've ever seen.
Despite this, the weak beginning lingers so much, that the film couldn't be elevated to great status.posted 479 days ago -
In the movie zodiac.. Who is the guy sitting in a van type truck with bloody hands and kinda blondish hair.. this movie was a blast, I thought it was interesting from start to finish. One other part that kinda' had me thinking was when robert graysmith is with the guy who "played organ at the theatre".. was this a hint that there was more than 1 killer or just an old weird guy getting his kicks scaring poor young jake?/lol.. anyways, thanks for the replys in advance...
posted 522 days ago -
Just wait next year for the uncut version of Zodiac dvd. I really hope to see it trough, just for watch the reall survivors interviews..
posted 524 days ago -
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I've always found Fincher to be an excellent,but basically technical,filmmaker-it's all precision aesthetics,no substance.Barring that,he makes kickass eye-candy,and I like his movies in spite of my "better judgment"--he's like Ridley Scott with less interesting scripts to work with."Zodiac" is well worth seeing,though.I guess it bombed at the theatre partly because of the great glut of serial killer movies of late,and two(maybe three) other versions of the Zodiac saga having been made in the last coupla years.
posted 530 days ago -
