You Need To Watch This Movie

Zodiac made its televisial premiere last night, and needless to say, I watched the hell out of it, because it's an absolutely great flick. Granted, I already own it on DVD, but that's neither here nor there. It's one of those special movies that wraps its hands around your throat from the moment you start watching it, regardless of whether you tag in at the beginning or halfway thru or three-quarters of the way thru. Which makes it all the more saddening to me that it went virtually unnoticed when it came out in early 2007, swept under the rug after a weak opening weekend and nothing more than enthusiastic critical acclaim.

I first caught it at an early press screening a couple weeks before it opened, and it was one of those rare treats when high expectations are met tenfold. David Fincher, its director, has become one of my all-time favorite filmmakers---Seven, Fight Club, and even The Game (a film I hated when it first saw it but now actually really enjoy). Fincher has this meticulous eye, never skimping on exposition and detail while able to deliver gangbusting suspense and sneak-attack shock moments.

Zodiac is clearly the work of a long-laboring sticklet for detail and facts, which is fitting because the film itself is all about obsessions over solving the elusive "Zodiac Killer" case that haunted California in the 1970s. Great performances (especially from a pre-Iron Man Robert Downey Jr., as a flamboyant, arrogant, and fearless reporter who disintegrates as a result of failed investigation).Jake Gyllenhall even checks in with some great work, as does Mark Ruffalo.

But what really sets this flick apart is its pacing. With a two-and-a-half hour running time, it's a taxing effort to watch, but one that's definitely worth it. But it moves slow, covers all of its tracks. Those expecting some gory serial killer horror yarn wil be a bit letdown; like I said, its about those who passionately and endlessly hunted for the Zodiac's identity. There are some shocking scenes, though. But how Fincher stages them is what truly makes him the fucking man. My personal favorite is the scene when the Zodiac terrorizes a yuppie couple having a picnic near a lake. No music is used, it's just the naturalism of idle chatter mixed with scared trembling, touched with a dose of the Zodiac's cold matter-of-fact delivery. When the carnage comes, its a true sucker punch, even when not delivering the bloody moneyshot.

And then there's the moment when the Zodiac sabotages a mother and her infant child's car-ride on a deserted, dark highway. Once she and her seed hop in his car for a lift to the service station, you know something bad is going to happen, but the line "Before I kil you, I'm going to throw your baby out the window" is so abrupt and clamly spoken, its a jaw-dropper.


So yeah, I fucking love this movie. Actually, its playing again right now on TV, and of course I'm watching it again. I advise you all do the same the next time it's on.