Gone Girl is directed by David Fincher and stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike. It's adapted from the book Gone Girl written by Gillian Flynn, who also did the screenplay for the film. The film begins with Affleck's character Nick Dunne returning home to find that his wife Amy (Pike) has gone missing. Nick's awkward behaviour is immediately latched upon by the press and media, who assume that he was involved in his wife's disappearance. So it comes down a very simple cliche mystery murder question, did he or didn't he? That's as much as I want to tell you about the plot of this film, otherwise I'd feel like I'm spoiling the film's mystery and intrigue. Why? Because this film to put it simply, is incredible.
David Fincher is one of my favourite directors of all time. He hasn't made one sore thumb film and that's down to his perfectionist personality. He demands quality performances from his cast and that's exactly what he receives. If he was a football manager he'd be Alex Ferguson. A man who has great people at his disposal and purposefully milks every bit of energy from them until he get what he needs. Fincher always seems to get that extra 20% from the actors. When I first saw Ben Affleck on screen, I admit I was thinking of the upcoming Batman vs Superman. He's looking in superb shape, he is the next Bruce Wayne etc etc. That ended after about 5 minutes. I was engrossed in his character. He felt completely natural and it proved again why the bloke is such a talent not just behind the camera but as a top quality actor. Brilliant. David Fincher as ever immerses the audience into this story and puts us as the films jury, We collect the evidence and we're left guessing with all the sharp, clever twists and turns that certainly kept me on my toes throughout the two and a half hour run-time. The intention to detail is immaculate as ever from a Fincher film. Everything you visualise is there for a purpose. Sets haven't been thrown together by a couple of production managers with a "that'll do" attitude. The tone that has been created by the film is very realistic. It's not all serious melodramatic dreariness which many mystery films tend to fall into the trap off. There are times when there's some good humour thrown in at the appropriate times. Tyler Perry who plays Affleck's defence lawyer certainly adds to that humour without going over the top, which is a first for him. His best performance by far. I loved how this film had so much to say on the current media. How much they influence our opinions and how we assume that we should believe everything we hear from a person in front of a camera who we don't personally know. Very thought provoking. But who impressed me the most was Rosamund Pike. If anybody just thought she was a Roger Moore "I can only act with my eyebrows" actress, this performance blows any doubts away. She is terrific in this film. The woman can act. I couldn't believe how good she was at times, My jaw dropped thinking to myself "Is that the really naff Bond girl I'm watching here?" Superb. Potential Oscar awaits.
My only niggle with this film is the ending. It's like a train that slams on the emergency brakes. The conclusion is very sudden and it cuts off very quickly. The last ten minutes could have easily been trimmed off and it wouldn't have made any difference to the plot of the film. And to be honest, that's nick picking at best.
Gone Girl is a magnificent mystery thriller that at the heart has David Fincher superb direction, which keeps this amazing mystery ride speeding along to the point of where you don't want it to end. Two and a half hours wasn't enough David!! Amazing performances in particular from Rosamund Pike cements the film as one of the best of the year so far.
9/10
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