‘What are you thinking? How are you feeling? What have we done to each other?’ – Nick Dunne
Gillian Flynn’s crime thriller Gone Girl was pinned as a bestseller before it even released, with the film right picked up by Twentieth Century Fox during the novel’s initial publication. It did, as predicted, sell like hotcakes, and everyone loved the twisted and fresh take on a missing persons case. It caught the attention of one David Fincher, who knew he had to make the movie of this book. Having repaired his relationship with the studio whilst making Fight Club, Fincher was signed on as director, and Flynn as screenwriter in a rare and unusual decision from a Hollywood studio. The result was not only great, but arguably better than the book it was based on.
On the day of her fifth wedding anniversary, Amy Elliott-Dunne (Rosamund pike) goes missing in what appears to be a kidnapping. The inspiration behind the massively popular ‘Amazing Amy’ children’s books, a national search for Amy begins with all media attention focused on Amy’s husband, Nick (Ben Affleck). As public opinion begins to turn on Nick, framing him as a murderer, his sordid secrets and hatred for the woman he married all begin to bubble to the surface as he desperately tries to defend himself from the increasingly aggressive public and press.
On the day of her fifth wedding anniversary, Amy Elliott-Dunne (Rosamund pike) goes missing in what appears to be a kidnapping. The inspiration behind the massively popular ‘Amazing Amy’ children’s books, a national search for Amy begins with all media attention focused on Amy’s husband, Nick (Ben Affleck). As public opinion begins to turn on Nick, framing him as a murderer, his sordid secrets and hatred for the woman he married all begin to bubble to the surface as he desperately tries to defend himself from the increasingly aggressive public and press.
I remember going to see Gone Girl at the cinema, and it was a first date believe it or not. If there ever was the wrong film to take someone to on a first date, it’s this one. Leaving the screening there was a palpable sense of distrust forming between us, as we looked at each other with a sense of unease following the events that we had bore witness to.
Gone Girl is nothing short of spectacular, and personally I consider it in Fincher’s top three films (alongside Fight Club and The Social Network). It really feels like the culmination of everything Fincher does well in a single film. The precision to which it is filmed and edited, the colour choices, the music, the dialogue, and the unexpectedly graphic violence all coalesce to form a picture that is both incredibly gripping but deeply unsettling.
We see the film through Nick’s eyes, and you start the film thinking he’s just some charming idiot who’s dealing with the impossible situation of being concerned for his wife yet also wanting to put on a good show for the people helping to find her. It’s a conflicting and weird way to act, but you go along with it because he seems like a good guy deep down. But the longer we spend with Nick the more we realise that he’s actually a massive asshole, and interspersed with entries from Amy’s diary which paint the picture of a deeply trouble marriage where she fears for her life compound to make us question whether Nick did actually kill his wife come the films midpoint.
Without spoiling too much, Gone Girl spends the first half of the film pulling off the most incredible sleight of hand trick I’ve seen in a film in a very long time. It has you looking at one place for so long that you completely forget to look anywhere else; and then the second half comes around and shows you everything you missed, or just outright ignored for the sake of the way the narrative was being delivered to you. It then culminates in one hell of a gut punch of an ending. It's enough to leave you sick to your stomach and seething with anger...for the right reasons of course.
Gone Girl is nothing short of spectacular, and personally I consider it in Fincher’s top three films (alongside Fight Club and The Social Network). It really feels like the culmination of everything Fincher does well in a single film. The precision to which it is filmed and edited, the colour choices, the music, the dialogue, and the unexpectedly graphic violence all coalesce to form a picture that is both incredibly gripping but deeply unsettling.
We see the film through Nick’s eyes, and you start the film thinking he’s just some charming idiot who’s dealing with the impossible situation of being concerned for his wife yet also wanting to put on a good show for the people helping to find her. It’s a conflicting and weird way to act, but you go along with it because he seems like a good guy deep down. But the longer we spend with Nick the more we realise that he’s actually a massive asshole, and interspersed with entries from Amy’s diary which paint the picture of a deeply trouble marriage where she fears for her life compound to make us question whether Nick did actually kill his wife come the films midpoint.
Without spoiling too much, Gone Girl spends the first half of the film pulling off the most incredible sleight of hand trick I’ve seen in a film in a very long time. It has you looking at one place for so long that you completely forget to look anywhere else; and then the second half comes around and shows you everything you missed, or just outright ignored for the sake of the way the narrative was being delivered to you. It then culminates in one hell of a gut punch of an ending. It's enough to leave you sick to your stomach and seething with anger...for the right reasons of course.
Nick is a surprisingly complicated character for a man that is for the most part quite stupid. The path that has led his and Amy’s relationship to this point is a winding one that’s fraught with economic downturns, layoffs, and family bereavement. It’s interesting to see a man who truly knew and adored everything about the woman he loved gradually lose that interest and knowledge of her until she practically turns into a stranger. Whilst the police are questioning him, he has literally no idea who his wife is. He doesn’t know what hobbies she has, if she has any friends, if she’s been looking for work, nothing. He’s so far beyond caring that you begin to ask the question of why are they still married?
Affleck provides a great performance to go with it too, he’s confident and cocky, he has this physical presence that makes him look like the perfect douchebag. He also brings great chemistry when performing alongside both Pike and Carrie Coon who plays his sister Margo.
But Pike’s performance is what really steals the show here. It’s hard to get into it much without revealing the excellent mid-story curveball, but she brings this perfect balance of sweet and sinister to the role of Amy. Similar to Nick, you can’t help but want to like her, but there’s something that’s just a bit off about her. But once you know what has really happened, Pike’s performance shines so bright that it eclipses everything else about the film.
Neill Patrick Harris also turns up as one of Amy's ex-boyfriends in a role that's uncharacteristically straight laced for the comedian. In fact it's kind of creepy, and the way he is worked into the narrative works so well because of how slimy and weird he is.
As previously mentioned, Gone Girl looks and sounds amazing. Another team up with cinematographer Jeff Cronenwelth, and composers Atticus Ross & Trent Reznor, Gone Girl is probably just as slick and refined as The Social Network. I think overall I prefer the score to Gone Girl over The Social Network, as I love the more sinister undertones that gradually begin to rise through the rest of the score and overwhelm it like poison. In combination with Cronenwelth’s precise framing that despite being extremely static feels as though it has this great kinetic energy because of the excellent editing.
Gone Girl’s a real treat to watch because it looks and sounds considerably better than any of its contemporaries in the genre, it feels anxiety inducing and oddly claustrophobic, and it gives the film so much atmosphere.
I could go on for ages about Gone Girl, but I don’t want to say too much because if you haven’t seen the film then I could not recommend it enough, and it's best going into it with as little knowledge as possible. What starts off like a straightforward missing person's case escalates into something considerably more elaborate and coldly calculated, and it’s genuinely one of the film’s I wish I could turn back time for and watch for the first time all over again because I'd love to get that rush of seeing it all fall into place again for the first time.
Gone Girl is superb, and without a doubt one of Fincher’s best films. Like The Social Network it collates everything great about Fincher’s style of filmmaking into a single package, and it’s one that’ll linger in your mind for years to come.
Affleck provides a great performance to go with it too, he’s confident and cocky, he has this physical presence that makes him look like the perfect douchebag. He also brings great chemistry when performing alongside both Pike and Carrie Coon who plays his sister Margo.
But Pike’s performance is what really steals the show here. It’s hard to get into it much without revealing the excellent mid-story curveball, but she brings this perfect balance of sweet and sinister to the role of Amy. Similar to Nick, you can’t help but want to like her, but there’s something that’s just a bit off about her. But once you know what has really happened, Pike’s performance shines so bright that it eclipses everything else about the film.
Neill Patrick Harris also turns up as one of Amy's ex-boyfriends in a role that's uncharacteristically straight laced for the comedian. In fact it's kind of creepy, and the way he is worked into the narrative works so well because of how slimy and weird he is.
As previously mentioned, Gone Girl looks and sounds amazing. Another team up with cinematographer Jeff Cronenwelth, and composers Atticus Ross & Trent Reznor, Gone Girl is probably just as slick and refined as The Social Network. I think overall I prefer the score to Gone Girl over The Social Network, as I love the more sinister undertones that gradually begin to rise through the rest of the score and overwhelm it like poison. In combination with Cronenwelth’s precise framing that despite being extremely static feels as though it has this great kinetic energy because of the excellent editing.
Gone Girl’s a real treat to watch because it looks and sounds considerably better than any of its contemporaries in the genre, it feels anxiety inducing and oddly claustrophobic, and it gives the film so much atmosphere.
I could go on for ages about Gone Girl, but I don’t want to say too much because if you haven’t seen the film then I could not recommend it enough, and it's best going into it with as little knowledge as possible. What starts off like a straightforward missing person's case escalates into something considerably more elaborate and coldly calculated, and it’s genuinely one of the film’s I wish I could turn back time for and watch for the first time all over again because I'd love to get that rush of seeing it all fall into place again for the first time.
Gone Girl is superb, and without a doubt one of Fincher’s best films. Like The Social Network it collates everything great about Fincher’s style of filmmaking into a single package, and it’s one that’ll linger in your mind for years to come.