Stars: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, Tyler Perry, Carrie Coon, Kim Dickens, Casey Wilson, Missi Pyle
Director: David Fincher
Oscar History: 1 nomination (Best Actress-Rosamund Pike)
Snap Judgment Ranking: 3/5 stars
And now it officially begins-Oscar season. That time of year when I seem to always have something to see at the movies and as a result my bank account depletes and I start to wonder if popcorn is a food group. It's also the time of year I write reviews that I know that I'll be revisiting, and try not to make a fool out of myself, and the snappishness of some of those rankings become all the more apparent when time gives me a new perspective on films and performances. (Spoilers Ahead) Because Gone Girl is not the sort of movie that you just sit back and say "that was great" or "that was terrible." It is the sort of movie where, after discussing it a bit, the fabric tends to unravel even if you still maintain the admiration. The movie, about a hapless man named Nick Dunne (Affleck) who is drawn into a world well over his head when his wife Amy (Pike) is found missing, starts out as a straight drama. There's very little suspense in the beginning of the movie. Nick, left with Rosamund Pike in just flashbacks and Affleck in the present recalling his wife, first perfect, then slightly less so, is both A) clearly innocent and B) clearly headed for the gallows. This is a man who has been set up either by fate or by someone else and every single finger points in his direction. The movie is a bit slow during this time, save for when it points out the faultiness of the American criminal system, showing clips of The Ellen Abbott Show (hosted by Kim Dickens doing a ruthless Nancy Grace impression) where Nick is pronounced guilty from the beginning, a media desperate to find a villain to go with the seemingly dead beautiful blonde.
The film gets a different energy, of course, when we find that his wife Amy isn't in fact dead, but planned the entire affair (this is about halfway through the movie, and at this point you've clearly realized that she's probably still alive, as otherwise there'd be no reason for the Oscar buzz for Rosamund Pike, who seems more like a plastic Barbie doll in her memories than anything of interest, and this movie wouldn't have needed to be made, since clearly it's the Scott Peterson Story and they already did that on Lifetime, though obviously not at this creative level). The movie then follows how she planned the entire faked death to try and punish her husband for his affair and for not being the perfect man she hoped he would be.
At this point, the film gets some electricity and not just occasional moments of brilliance. You find in Pike a compelling character, someone you both hate and secretly want to get away with it for bringing so much life into the film (without her, the film may trend into that horrible place of "bland but handsome"...which, admittedly is usually how I describe Ben Affleck's cinematic career). The plot takes quite a few detours during this part, and some convenient changes-of-heart (I don't believe for a second that Pike would have actually killed herself based on five minutes with the character, or that she would have carried around her money in such a discreet way, trusting the two backwoods-style characters who eventually steal her entire cash reserve). Eventually she has to improvise and involve her controlling ex-boyfriend Desi (Harris) in order to find some way to finance her endeavors and eventually murders him to find a new "kidnapper" for her that isn't her husband, since otherwise she'll become a different' man's "prisoner."
The film, like most, has its good and bad. The film's not-so-secret jewel is Pike, a 35-year-old British actress who has been at the sides of films like Die Another Day and An Education, but has never had a showcase role the equivalent of this, certain to make her a household name by the end of awards season. Pike finds vile places to take her character, frequently trading on her beauty and intelligence to seduce and manipulate everyone around her. It'd be sort of unbelievable if she didn't come across as so methodical and planned; she's a Stepford Wife crossed with a bloodhound. The rest of the cast is solid. Ben Affleck isn't great in his work, but he is physically and personality-wise perfect for the role (having that muscular beefiness that defines sexually-attractive in the Midwest, he is both smart and hot enough to have attracted Amy in the first place and continue her obsession, but dumb enough to continue falling for her games). The supporting parts are a bit of a mixed bag. For every Carrie Coon (terrificly understated as the twin sister who gets dragged along with her brother through the mud) and Casey Wilson (the only towns-person who legitimately has enough crazy and confidence to have been a true threat to be the kidnapper in the first half's narrative), there's a Tyler Perry (who is fine, admittedly, but too big of a star to not be a distraction in a straight supporting part) and Neil Patrick Harris (who is certainly the film's weakest acting link-never finding a place for his character to be either a similarly-minded sociopath or just a rube constantly foiled by his lust for Amy).
The film's direction is of course wonderfully sedated, as is Fincher's raison d'etre. He moves the camera through the world as if we're watching a stylish documentary, and the lighting is always dead-on (though a bit predictable, especially with the constant grey) from Jeff Cronenweth. Probably my biggest problem with the film would be the writing. I've never read Gillian Flynn's best-selling novel, and perhaps some of these plot holes would have been solved if I had, but that's not really how a movie is supposed to function (it's a separate entity, and if there's plot holes in the book they should be patched up when you get to the movie). The film never quite finds its identity. The first half it feels like a cultural study of our justice system and an unfolding crime drama, the second half occasionally a treatise on how marriage may be a destructive institution to our individuality and a paced-thriller over whether Amy will get away with the crimes (you know about thirty minutes before the end that she clearly will, otherwise there'd be no fun in the dark comedy of the movie, so this in particular peters out). There's also too many story missteps (the entire Desi plot seems wildly underwritten and an extremely convenient scapegoat without much work to be done by Amy to solve the problem, the first half gives us no reason to believe that Nick could be guilty, which would add to the film's intrigue) to really forgive the writers.
Still, though, this is a film worth seeing (which, admittedly, I hope you did before you read this review-it says spoiler alert for a reason), as the strong attributes (Pike, the direction, Coon, Affleck's perfect casting, in that order) outweigh the weak. It's also a film clearly made for adults in an increasingly teenage-oriented world, and as someone who is continually hoping for more grown-up fare at the cinema, that's worth celebrating.
What were your thoughts on Gone Girl (considering the Box Office I'm sure most of you have seen it)? Did you also find the plot to be weighted down with too many directions and not enough consistency? Were you also in love with Rosamund Pike's star role? And what sort of future does this film have at the Oscars? Share in the comments!
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