Twelve years on from his last outing into the world of serial killers, David “Se7en” Fincher returns with the true story of a multiple murderer who taunted Californian authorities with ciphers and letters for decades and has still never been caught.
Jake Gyllenhaal plays Robert Graysmith - on whose books “Zodiac” and “Zodiac Unmasked” the film is based - a political cartoonist at the San Francisco Chronicle who dedicated his life to uncovering the identity of the man who claimed to have committed over 35 murders during the late 60s and 70s.
Assisting Graysmith on his quest are hard drinking journalist Paul Avery (Downey Jr) and detective Dave Toschi (Ruffalo) - on whom Steve McQueen’s character in “Bullitt” and Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry was allegedly based – colourful characters whose lives were changed forever when the first Zodiac letter arrived at the Chronicle back in 1969.
They say:
Empire: “This gripping character study becomes more agonisingly suspenseful as it gets closer to an end that can’t be confirmed.”
Variety: “This adaptation of Robert Graysmith's bestseller reps by far director David Fincher's most mature and accomplished work.”
New York Times: “A funereal entertainment that is an unexpected repudiation of Mr. Fincher’s most famous movie as well as a testament to this cinematic savant’s gifts.”
We say:
While Zodiac sees Fincher back on familiar territory, anyone hoping for “Se7en 2” will be sorely disappointed. More similar in style to “All the President’s Men”, Zodiac is an enthralling character study that tackles themes of obsession and addiction, while rigorously observing the intricacies of police and journalistic procedure.
Writer James Vanderbilt (whose previous efforts Basic and Welcome to the Jungle certainly didn’t suggest he had anything this impressive in him) has crafted a magnificent script that manages to maintain a clear narrative drive throughout, despite the astonishing amount of detailed information that he crams into the running time.
Vanderbilt also knows when to lighten the mood with the occasional, well timed joke, although the domestic interludes with Graysmith’s nagging wife (Sevigny) begin to grate after a while as they take focus away from the main plot, further delaying our pursuit for the truth.
Fincher is on more reserved form than normal, clearly obsessed with the subject material just as his characters were, but still manages to engineer one exceedingly tense and creepy sequence when Graysmith realizes he may be in the company of the Zodiac killer.
As well as the three great central performances – Downey Jr gets the flashiest and most memorable part - production designer Donald Graham Burt deserves special mention for his stunningly detailed recreation of 70s San Francisco which is assisted by Fincher’s rousing period soundtrack.
Where Zodiac will no doubt suffer however is in its hefty 158 minute duration, and the unconventional finale. With no definitive conclusion audiences are likely to feel frustrated, and getting an average cinemagoer to concentrate on a film for more than 90 minutes without any car crashes or shoot outs during the summer blockbuster season looks unlikely.
CAST
Jake Gyllenhaal
Mark Ruffalo
Robert Downey Jr
Anthony Edwards
Chloe Sevigny
Bryan Cox
DIRECTOR
David Fincher
TIME
158 mins
POSTED...
Fri 11 May 2007 at 6:56am
