Blog Project #2 – Movie Review of "Gone Girl"

                I watched the movie “Gone Girl” as soon as it came out on DVD, as many of my friends were raving about it, and the trailers had seemed intriguing. I had seen it appear in the news, heard of the actors, listened to the buzz about the book, and all that I was hearing was that it was a well-made, chilling mystery. With no bad reviews, I thought why not? 

                At the very end of the trailer the main character asks if his interrogator has ever heard the expression “The simplest answers are always the correct ones” to which she responds, “Actually, I’ve never found that to be true.” That is what hooked me. It’s a glimpse of an unopened mystery box within the movie that is sitting there waiting to be discovered.  It turns out that box was bursting with countless surprises.

                The plot of “Gone Girl” was originally from a book by an author named Gillian Flynn. She worked tirelessly with David Fincher in order to adapt it to the masterpiece it is now on film. There were many well-known actors and actresses, the main characters being played by Rosamund Pike, Ben Affleck, and Neil Patrick Harris. According to IMDb, Rosamund Pike was nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (for the Academy Awards), Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama (for Golden Globes), and Best Leading Actress (for BAFTA Awards). David Fincher was given a nomination for Best Director, and author Gillian Flynn was nominated for Best Screenplay.

                The movie begins on the fifth anniversary of Nick and Amy, when suddenly Amy is nowhere to be found. Questions and accusations soon begin to pummel Nick and he struggles with the unrelenting attention from the media. As each secret of his is brought to light, it seems more and more a possibility that he killed his own wife.

                So far according to “The Numbers,” “Gone Girl” made $368,562,331 in the box office world-wide, and $19,861,927 in total video sales.

                David Fincher has directed for a wide variety of shows and films including “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” “The Social Network,” “House of Cards” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” While being comfortable in more than one genre, I would say he has been most successful in thriller/suspense movies – a category that “Gone Girl” happens to fall under. I would say it is far superior to other movies of its type. At times, thrillers can get boring or confusing if there are too many plot twists, but “Gone Girl” placed just enough clues that the viewer could keep following without unraveling the entire mystery at once.

                I think this movie is important to culture because there are still very few movies that really depict women as truly having the same, or even superior, capacity for evil as men. Some seem to believe it is actually a somewhat warped push of feminism. In an article for “The Ranger News” by Krista Skweres, she makes the point that in this particular movie, all the strongest characters are women. Nick’s wife Amy, the Sheriff, and even the reporter, all assert huge amounts of authority and power. Though the story may indeed be perverse, you cannot find weakness in these women. Link to full article here: http://trnonline.org/2014/11/06/gone-girl-pro-feminism-in-its-own-twisted-way/.

                Gillian Flynn, the author of the original story had an interview in the New York Times in which she asserted: “Of course, it’s not misogynistic. Women shouldn’t be expected to only play nurturing, kind caretakers. That’s always been part of my goal — to show the dark side of women. Men write about bad men all the time, and they’re called antiheroes.” When asked if she was surprised when people had the reaction they did, she further noted “I had about 24 hours where I hovered under my covers and was like: ‘I killed feminism. Why did I do that? Rats. I did not mean to do that.’ And then I very quickly kind of felt comfortable with what I had written.” Link to full article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/23/arts/talking-with-the-authors-of-gone-girl-and-wild.html?_r=0.

                I believe the author was speaking to a younger generation, but also the general beliefs of this culture. In both the book and the movie, the goal was to show something that hasn’t really been shown before, because maybe it’s something that people haven’t grasped yet. She says of the plot, “A theme that has always interested me is how women express anger, how women express violence. That is very much part of who women are, and it’s so unaddressed. A vast amount of literature deals with cycles of violence about men, antiheroes. Women lack that vocabulary.”

                I think the movie is incredible. The characters are all extremely fascinating, and the viewer’s curiosity is held until the very end. Because it was based on a true story, it makes you wonder if the events taking place in the movie happen more often than we think. I would say it’s one of David Fincher’s best movies, and the actors and actresses did exceptionally well depicting such dark and shadowy personalities. I think it will be remembered because of the message of the story – it’s so different than what culture is used to being portrayed.

                As far as reviews go, on “Rotten Tomatoes,” 88% positive feedback was given, the consensus being: “Dark, intelligent, and stylish to a fault, Gone Girl plays to director David Fincher's sick strengths while bringing the best out of stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike. Link here: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gone_girl. In a review from “Vanity Fair” (watch out for spoilers!) the following is written about the movie: “Smartly shot, detailed (the opening and closing credits have a ghostly simplicity to them that gave me chills), and performed, it’s a designer-made studio film that dares to be about big, difficult stuff. It’s also often very funny. But that doesn’t mean you’ll leave the theater with a bounce in your step.”

                Because of the movie, I am now very interested in the book, having not read it before, and also the author, who seems to have a knack for mysteries. I love this genre in media, and I look forward to reading Flynn’s work, as well as watching the subsequent creations of David Fincher as time goes on. Several in my family have already watched the movie, and they are just as happy with it as the friends who recommended that I first watch it. If you are one who enjoys a good thriller, I would recommend it to you as well.