Zodiac

When Zodiac, the new serial killer thriller from diretor David Fincher, is at it's best, it's reminiscent of The Silence of the Lambs and other classic taut thrillers. When it's at it's worst, it's still interesting, well acted, well directed and just altogether well done.

Since the movie is based on the book written by Robert Graysmith (portrayed by Jake Gyllenhaal in the movie), then it's smart to assume that the facts are as accurate as possible. The film starts with a few scary scenes of a man killing couples in the middle of the night. The killer begins to call himself the Zodiac and starts sending letters to various newspapers including the San Francisco Chronicle which is the main focus of the film since that is where Graysmith worked as a cartoonist. At first, he really has nothing to do with the case. He's merely interested in the codes the Zodiac sends to the paper. Instead, it's reporter Paul Avery, played wonderfully by Robert Downey Jr. who is ordered to cover the case. On the cop side of the issue, two cops, Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Edwards, become involved in the case once the killer moves out of the suburbs and into the city. The story follows the murder and the suspects and the investigation for a good chunk of time, but once you begin to accept the film as a sort of ensemble piece, it takes off in a different direction and follows Gyllenhaal as he becomes more and more obsessed with the story. After so many years of not solving the murders, he just can't let it go. He gets involved under the guise that he's writing a book about the murders but really he just wants to solve them for some inexplicable reasons. He even jeopardizes his marriage in order to have a resolution to the murders. It's debatable about whether that resolution ever really comes. They never arrested anyone for the murders although the movie (and the book) finger one particular suspect very heavily and makes it difficult to dispute his involvment in the murders.

This movie is close to 3 hours long but it doesn't really feel like it. I read an interview with David Fincher in which he said that it was impossible to cut anything from the movie. He said in order to tell the story completely, it had to be 2 hours and 50 minutes long. I agree. The movie sticks so closely to the book and it covers every angle very well. In order to tell a story that covers nearly two decades, it's necessary to be a little on the long side (but, then, I'm a fan of long movies in general).

The filming techniques aren't as flashy as Fincher's earlier works (Seven, Fight Club) but that actually works for the film and lends it more of a documentary feel. The clothes and the surroundings are so authentic to the late 60s, 70s and early 80s, that the movie just feels real. The screenplay is wonderful and the characters are compelling and interesting. All of the performances are wonderful, down to all the supporting players, but Gyllenhaal, Downey Jr., and Ruffalo are all really wonderful in the starring roles. Gyllenhaal and Downey work well off each other and have a really great chemistry. The movie even has that witty, darkly humerous charm that most Fincher movies have. There are a few particular scenes that are downright scary, including a cat and mouse scene with Gyllenhaal's character in the home of someone who turns out to be a suspect that had me barely breathing. The outdoor shots of San Francisco make artistic use of vibrant dark colors at night, and glowing pastels during the day. The interiors capture the maze-like atmosphere that cops and reporters must navigate daily. The news room scenes bustle and explode with loudness. The murder scenes remind me of Bonnie and Clyde.

Zodiac is the kind of movie that sticks with you. For an unsolved case, it's terrifying to think that the killer is still out there somewhere (although it's widely accepted that the killer died int he 90s). But, still, this is the kind of movie that instills a realistic dread inside of you. It has an ending that is ambiguous and perfect for the film. Zodiac is an excellent combination of nerve-racking suspense and police procedural work. If you have any interest in murders or serial killers (or great film) then you should be riveted. If you have a small attention span then you should probably stick to Wild Hogs instead.

Grade: A-