Directed by:
David FincherScreenplay:
Gillian FlynnCinematography:
Jeff CronenwethCast:
Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, Tyler Perry, Carrie Coon, Kim Dickens, Patrick Fugit, David Clennon, Lisa Banes, Missi Pyle, Emily Ratajkowski (more)VOD (5)
Plots(1)
GONE GIRL unearths the secrets at the heart of a modern marriage. On the occasion of his fifth wedding anniversary, Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) reports that his beautiful wife, Amy (Rosamund Pike), has gone missing. Under pressure from the police and a growing media frenzy, Nick's portrait of a blissful union begins to crumble. Soon his lies, deceits and strange behavior have everyone asking the same dark question: Did Nick Dunne kill his wife? (20th Century Fox)
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Reviews (19)
When an author adapts his own (so complex) work for the silver screen, it rarely bodes well because there is too much personal involvement. This doesn’t apply to Flynn, who wasn’t afraid of cutting up and changing her "mirror holding, not-so-much-crime-thriller, satirical, cynical bestseller about relationships" to suit the needs of another medium. So she got rid of everything not directly related to the central storyline. Due to this there is drastically less about those two (and so the main snag with the original book, that these two are puppets who behave according to the momentary needs of the story and that they aren’t living characters, becomes much more apparent) and more about the investigation storyline and the influence of the media on public opinion. And so the movie did include Nick’s unfulfilled ambitions as a writer and Amy’s magazine quizzes in everyday practice. Even the diary entries are edited to the bare minimum; it’s simply whittled down to a stump. And as much as this approach didn’t work in the book, the better it works on the movie screen; especially Fincher’s so apt, coolly depersonalized concept which is taken a level higher by the disquieting hypnotic background music from the Reznor/Ross duo. In any case, the most important parts of the book remained. The evolution of the Nick/Amy relationship is cleverly written, like the best horoscopes. I mean in a way that any couple in a long term relationship can recognize themselves in some respect (I’m talking about the first half here). And in this situation you might take it personally, because this creates the impression that "this could happen to you too". If it isn’t happening already...
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I haven't seen a movie this suspenseful in a long, a truly long time. It's so terribly suspenseful that after the first line I was ready to rewind the film to the end to see how it would turn out. It blends so many things that I love in movies. Unexpected twists and turns, engaging narration from the main heroine, and... one big game. And the best part is the insightful, even clinical way in which it's filmed. I have no complaints about the cast either. I'm simply and plainly blown away and if anyone asks me for a movie recommendation this year, this one will immediately jump out at me. Anyway, I'm off to buy the book this weekend. 5 stars.
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Even though David Fincher is my favourite, Gone Girl didn't get me as much as with Zodiac, Se7en or Fight Club, which are a level above. What bothered me about Gone Girl at first was Ben Affleck, I don't like him, and the excessive running time is a bit tiresome for such a genre film. Luckily after an hour and a half there is a great twist that lifts the bored man out of his seat and it was the real Fincher! Perfect intelligent dialogues, one over the top gore scene and a solid climax that convinced me that Gone Girl deserves four stars without a doubt, even if the first half is significantly weaker. Women really are bitches. 75%
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Bitching about Fincher playing it safe is like badmouthing Jagr for his hockey finesse and scoring goals. This narrative, directed with the precision of a neurosurgeon, for whom the camera is the scalpel and the music the anesthetic, precisely doses the marital crisis with a cool detachment, in which the apparent waters of detachment are navigated by actors who have every letter of the script pinned directly to their bodies. Affleck's worldliness with the hallmark of a small-town dweeb works, but Rosamund Pike reigns supreme. Their interaction is something you experience on screen once or twice every three years. It’s a perfectly polished film that knows it and isn't ashamed of it. The first and last shots are divine.
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This seemingly careless directorial style, in which every scene has its place, is slowly starting to bother me. Because it has never been as impersonal in David Fincher's interpretation as it is here. And if a dramatic thriller, whose essence lies in relationships, lacks even a hint of chemistry or tangible emotions between Nick and Amy, that's a disappointment. And if they also lack it in those moments when they are supposed to be a couple in love or overflowing with hatred, I realize that I am not getting nearly as much as I would like – and probably should, considering the topic. The complicated journey of the lost girl and the people around her is significantly less sophisticated or surprising than it promises most of the time. Relationships may be hard work and a science – but they're definitely not like this.
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