Zodiac

5 years is a long time to wait. With Zodiac although once again David Fincher has not been able to equal Se7en, he's shooting percentage is still at 100%. He has not had a misstep in his last 5 films. Zodiac was outstanding and surpassed my expectations. I was nervous about a runtime that exceeded 2 and half hours on a story about the chasing of a serial killer that was never caught, but Fincher pulls it off. He made all the right choices in casting, filming, editing, and all that other fancy stuff that make up the final product.

I have constantly been impressed with David Fincher’s work. This time around he kept me engrossed in the chase for the zodiac killer even though there was little to no action involved. It was all about the people whose lives were affected by investigating the murders. And, man, there are actors falling out of the woodwork here. The highlight as usual nowadays is Robert Downey Jr. I don’t know how he pulls these characters off each and every single time but he does not disappoint here. Just the nuances to the way he moves or how he speaks his lines helps show Paul Avery’s descent into paranoia. That and whatever the hell the thing is called that he was wearing around his neck. I want one of those (searches wikipedia) neckerchiefs! Using attire of the neck as a segue way, Mark Ruffalo was unafraid to have himself filmed while rocking the bowtie. I love old school neckwear. On top of that, he was constantly eating animal crackers while on the job … so do I! I love animal crackers. Ruffalo may have played the main detective but Anthony Edwards, Donal Logue, and Elias Koteas all get there chance to play the dogged investigator. Each one also throws in just the right amount of humor to lighten the story when necessary. Other names like Brian Cox, Philip Baker Hall, Clea DuVall, and Chloe Sevigny are sprinkled throughout story to keep things lively. This is a classic bombastic Brian Cox performance; I will never get tired of those. I know I have listed everyone else already but Jake Gyllenhaal is in no way overshadowed. His character may have been the most difficult to portray since the movie is told through his eyes but he is not very heroic. In fact he nearly destroys his family over his obsession to find the killer after everyone else has given up. Still Jake is able to show both Robert Graysmith’s odd nature and his slide to near madness. Oh yeah and Kate and Marie Warner’s father used to own a San Francisco newspaper, good for him. There is nothing bad here.

I love a movie that has both the story and the casting to allow talent to shine through. David Fincher has shown the ability to make those films throughout his career … lets just sidestep Alien3 for now. Zodiac delivered to a level I was not expecting, I may have hoped to see one of the best movies of 2007 but I had sincere reservations. Well once again I was proven to be an idiot, nothing new there. Find the time, spend the money, and don’t commit serial murders.

9 out of 10