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Gone Girl Movie Review: Gone Girl starring Ben Affleck & Rosamund Pike

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Image via newdvdreleasedates.com.
Image via newdvdreleasedates.com.

(There are some spoilers.)

Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck)’s beautiful wife Amy (Rosamund Pike) is missing under suspicious circumstances. Police detective Boney (Kim Dickens) and officer Gilpin (Patrick Fugit) get right on the case, with Boney giving Nick the benefit of the doubt and Gilpin ready to blame Dunne.

As the audience we’re neither with Boney nor Gilpin: if he did it, it’s too obvious. If he’s innocent, also too obvious. But we know it’s a David Fincher movie, and it will probably not be black and white. And expectedly, things turn out to be all shades of grey:

While Nick tries to manage his in-laws and the media reaction with the help of his twin sister Go, we see he’s not exactly the doting husband he wants others to believe. He seems clueless about his wife’s daily activities, friends or diary, and to top of it all, he’s having an affair with a 20-year-old (and going to great lengths to hide it from others).

From the beginning of the movie, we have some flashbacks, with the voice-over from Amy, guiding us through their relationship, from the great start to troubling times, until we see Nick’s violent and dangerous side. And around the time cops are sure Nick’s behind her disappearance, and possibly murder, we hear this brilliant line from Amy:

“I’m so much happier now that I’m dead.”

So yes, she’s making a run for it to make Nick pay for being a lying, cheating bastard. And if you think she is taking things too far, just wait till you see how much further she’s willing to go, and how she handles her back-up plans…

*

Gone Girl is one crazy, psychotic mystery/thriller/drama that might make you question certain things in life, like how well you actually know the people you are with, how dangerous certain kinds of people can be and well, whether or not getting married is a sane idea in the first place.

Despite the original elements in its story, and some seriously fantastic acting from Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl is far from a smooth, fast ride. I’m aware that this was intentional, but the unevenness in pacing created moments, at least for me, where I struggled to stay engaged in the movie. It flows faster and better once we find out what Amy is up to, and how truly disturbed and calculating she is, but until then, I kept wishing some scenes were left in the editing room.

Because no matter how different and captivating a movie is, 149 minutes isn’t generally the amount I’m ready to give to a mystery/ drama/ thriller. Well-done epic movies? Sure. A decent piece in a trilogy where you don’t have the chance to get bored because every scene (and interaction) is necessary? Yeah.

But for me, Gone Girl would be even better at 139 minutes. Hell, at 129 or a little less, I could have jumped at the “masterpiece” wagon.

Because when a film is rated at 8.3 on IMDB (already grabbing a place on the site’s 250 best movies list) and has earned more than 350 million dollars at the box office against its 61 million budget, you want to be blown away by every second of the movie. There’s no place for boredom.

Call me sentimental, traditional or whatever, but I still prefer Se7en. At a little over 2 hours, it is tighter, creepier and has the more satisfactory ending. (Se7en is also on IMDB 250 and rated over 8 (8.7.,to be exact)-hence the comparison).

And the problem is with establishing your “villain” to be so brilliant is this haunting question: didn’t she have anything better to do with that Harvard degree and brain of hers than to take revenge? No attempts at world-domination? Trying to save the world or destroy it? And why let herself stoop to such a level if she is so awesome? Isn’t pretending to be someone else to find yourself a partner something losers, or at least very irrational people do?

Her motives and actions don’t match the IQ and OCD-thinking we’re given, and that’s another con if you think about the movie too much.

*

That said, I love Fincher, and this was a solid movie. But worth the rating and the box office-smashing? Not to me.

*

How did you feel about the movie? Please let me know in the comments.

Fun Gone Girl Trivia

  • The movie was written by Gillian Flynn, who adapted it from her own novel.
  • Scoot McNairy, our lovely protagonist from Monsters, plays one of Amy’s victims.
  • Director David Fincher (Fight Club), while mainly known for his dark mystery/thrillers (Se7en, Zodiac, Panic Room, The Game) has also found huge success with dramas (The Social Network, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.)
  • In the shooting script, Nick Dunne is mentioned to be in his 30s. Ben Affleck is in his early 40s.
  • Some of Rosamund Pike’s films include Pride and Prejudice, Jack Reacher, Surrogates and Fracture.

 

Also on Ben Affleck

State of Play starring Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Rachel Mcadams and Helen Mirren

The Company Men starring Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper, Maria Bello & Kevin Costner

Also on Rosamund Pike

Surrogates starring Bruce Willis, Rosamund Pike & Radha Mitchell

Pride and Prejudice starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen

Fracture starring Ryan Gosling & Anthony Hopkins

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Before Midnight starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy: The Sequel I’d So Wanted to Like

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before midnight movie poster
Image via eksiil.net.

It’s essential to remember where we are coming from, and before diving straight into my review, I want to talk a bit about the two movies that came before. But you can head straight to the Before Midnight part if you like. Just scroll down a bit;)

Before Sunrise: A Romantic Haven for The Realistic Romantic

In 1995, Jesse and Celine met on a train, and connected like they haven’t connected with anyone. They were both cute, young (in their early 20s) and, as much as Jesse was more obviously so, romantic. They got along so well, in fact, Jesse didn’t want to get off at his temporary station in Vienna (he was flying back home the next day) so he persuaded Celine to get off with him and spend the day/night in Vienna (Before Sunrise). You can read a more thorough, spoiler-free review here.

Of course Celine and Jesse fell in love during their spontaneous and romantic day, and we fell in love with their story (as well as the city.) Now, I’ll spoil the ending, so you might want to avoid this post if you haven’t seen Before Sunrise.

Hell, you shouldn’t be here if you haven’t seen Before Sunset (sequel to Before Sunrise, which we’ll talk about shortly). But please do come back after you’ve seen it.

OK, so Before Sunrise has a semi-happy, semi-vague ending. Celine and Jesse agree not to exchange numbers or addresses (which is pretty dumb and naive, considering how they felt about each other), but to meet in Vienna in six months. They say their goodbyes and go on their separate ways. But don’t get me wrong, Before Sunrise is one of my favorite films, and I pretty much love everything about it.

Before Sunset: A Little Darker, More Realistic and Just As Good Sequel

Come 2004, we get Before Sunset, the sequel. This is where we are disappointed in the beginning to find out that that planned meeting never happened. Jesse has gone on to publish a bestseller about their day in Vienna, and is on a book tour in Paris, which is where Celine lives. Celine drops by at his book signing, and from then on, the movie is about them catching up 9 years later.

As they mostly walk around Paris, we learn what they’ve been up to. Professionally, they’ve chased their ideals. Romantically, they’re a mess. Celine is in a kind of relationship with a guy she doesn’t care much about. Jesse is unhappily married with a young son; he would probably have bolted if not for him.

Here, because they are in their mid-30s, things are, or at least seem to be, a bit bleak. And not just because of their current disappointing relationships, but because we learn they couldn’t meet at their designated time and that they still have feelings for each other.

The ending is still a bit vague, but basically, this time we kind of, sort of know they stayed together. OK, let me put this way: we guess they stayed together at that moment, but we aren’t sure if it lasted. Well, we weren’t sure for 9 years, until Before Midnight came out.

Before Midnight: Bleak, Hostile, Insensitive, Bitchy, Toxic – Is this the sequel about Celine and Jesse’s dumber, more aggressive and ultra insensitive clones?

I love Before Sunrise to bits, and in some ways, I love Before Sunset even more because it seems more realistic and sincere. It’s easy to relate to the disappointments and missed opportunities and what-ifs of being a grown-up.

The dialogue also sounds more natural than the first movie. Director/writer Richard Linklater, and co-writers/lead actors Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy have done splendid jobs capturing a genuine, second part of a love story.

Before Midnight has a lovely trailer. It looks like you’ll look into the marriage of one of our favorite couples in movie history, and what years have done to their relationship (we know it has been years because they have kids and they’re on vacation together as a family).

And it starts well enough: Jesse is at the airport saying goodbye to his now teenage son Hank who has spent the summer in Greece with them. Then it takes a while we can get some quality time with just Celine and Jesse. Sure, it’s just them talking in the car while their twin girls sleep at the back of the car but it’s more talking at each other and making jokes about their kids instead of really sharing – not the type of Jesse and Celine exchanges we’ve gotten used to. Yes, we get it. They are married. Things are different. But are you really ready for just how much things have changed?

Then they’re back around the writer’s residence, Jesse talking to his friends, and Celine helping out in the kitchen (Celine in the kitchen???) and then it’s everyone at the house having dinner together. The stuff our duo would discuss among themselves is discussed together here, where Celine does her usual (in this movie!) putting-Jesse-down routine.

So 35 minutes in, and they still haven’t taken a walk around town just the two of them.

OK, about 47 minutes in or so, we’re finally with the two of them, only their conversation revolves mostly around their kids, and Celine’s insecurities. There are some delightful moments and smiles, but it’s very limited.

After a few minutes of Before-Sunrisey moments, we go to the hotel Celine was so reluctant to go to, and all hell breaks lose. This is where the movie puts me further off long-lasting relationships and having kids. This where I say forever goodbye to the Celine and Jesse I know, wishing I can forget this movie, so that I watch the first two movies again, without being haunted by this one.

*

Remember that beautiful scene by the fountain, little after dawn, in Before Sunrise where Celine was talking about how she’d grow to love someone more after she has gotten to know them entirely…Well, turns out, she just grows to resent them. Yay! Celine is another woman who has grown to resent her husband who shockingly didn’t change at all.

Now, I’m not saying I’m super awesome and Celine’s a bitch. We all have our own demons, problems and neuroses. But Celine here is making me miss Ally McBeal; and at least Ally was likeable and well-meaning most of the time. And she was funnier than she was irritating.

Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t head over heels with Jesse either. The last thing I want is a guy with a bitchy ex-wife and a teenage son, who plans a whole summer according to his needs, doesn’t include loyalty in his definition of being fully committed and who openly checks out younger, perkier women who happen to be dating his friend!

It’s just that next to Celine, he wins the lesser of two evils award.

*

I’m not saying I hated it. It had its moments. It had the trademark gorgeous scenery of a foreign country. But it didn’t have passion or romance. It didn’t have faith in the relationship and love story we grew up to love. There was no respect on Celine’s part, and don’t get me started about their lackluster ideas of being fully committed to each other…

So to sum it up all three movies’ reviews:

During Before Sunrise, you want to be Celine or Jesse.

During Before Sunset, you hope you don’t miss out on chances, and you wish you have the guts to follow your heart if you do happen to miss out on chances. You still don’t mind being Jesse or Celine.

During Before Midnight, you just want to go to Greece.

*

And I really didn’t want them to stay together, because that relationship became as harmful as toxic waste. I’m not some naive romantic that expects everything to be perfect. But I do expect an insult-free, loyal, passionate and respectful relationship. Otherwise, what the hell is the point? Speed had more romance than Before Midnight, for crying out loud!

*

This is a good, decent, honest movie. It’s just a highly disappointing sequel.

Recommended Movies: Strangers Falling in Love in One Day 

Falling Overnight

Forget Me Not 

Monsters– with a sci-fi angle

Also on Ethan Hawke

Brooklyn’s Finest starring Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke and Don Cheadle

Lord of War starring Nicolas Cage, Jared Leto and Ethan Hawke

Actors and Literature: Ethan Hawke, Hugh Laurie and Viggo Mortensen

Reality Bites starring Ethan Hawke, Winona Ryder and Ben Stiller

Alias TV Show starring Jennifer Garner, Michael Vartan, Bradley Cooper and Victor Garber

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After The Dark Movie starring James Darcy, Sophie Lowe & Rhys Wakefield

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after_the_dark_poster
After The Dark movie poster via teaser-trailer.com

The philosophy teacher Mr. Zimit (James D’Arcy) of a high school senior class at an international school in Jakarta presents an extremely challenging role play on their last day of school:

It’s pretty much the atomic apocalypse, and they have the change to get to a nearby bunker. The bunker will protect them, and can keep them alive and healthy for a year. The problem is the bunker can only have 10 people, and there are 21 of them, including Zimit.

Choosing will have to based on practicality as the teacher has them randomly choose an occupation. So obviously the organic farmer (James, played by Rhys Wakefield) is exponentially luckier than the poet.

As they get more into the game, they get more freaked out by how ready and willing Zimit is to eliminate the “useless” ones. He also says he is the wild card, so they might or might not be missing something essential if they don’t let him.

But based on his erratic behavior, they don’t pick Zimit, and it turns out he is the one with the exit code to the bunker: they have one year to see if they’ll be able to leave, or die there after their resources run out.

And this is only the first iteration. There will be two more – with two more very interesting situations, occupations and the desirability of the candidates changing.

So everyone gets to see what the other is made of, and we end up with a very interesting story about how even the most supposedly rational people give in to their urges.

*

After the Dark (originally called The Philosophers) is an intriguing film with potentially a disappointing ending. I say potentially, because I initially hated it. But after thinking about the whole story, from the beginning, it made a lot of sense. It also explained the irrationality of their teacher in all of the situations, and his hostility toward James.

Now, you will probably hate a few characters, the teacher being one of them. The female protagonist, Petra (Sophie Lowe, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland) might also get on your nerves after you see the whole picture. You will probably also think the students didn’t think things through in certain situations and could have been more rational and smarter, ending their iterations with much better results.

But after you think about how normally rational people tend to act irrationally in so many situations, it will make sense. It might not be the ending I’d have gone with if I were the writer; but with these characters, I’m fine with the ending, and I like the movie as a whole (though I find the first half a bit more exciting.)

*

This is an interesting, post-apocalyptic movie about rationality and human nature in general. Recommended.

Written and directed by John Huddles.

PS Is it just me or does James D’Arcy remind you of Jack Davenport (Steve of Coupling)?

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Something’s Gotta Give starring Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson & Keanu Reeves: How A Romantic Comedy Ought to Be

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Something's Gotta Give movie poster
Image via movieposter.com.

I’m a huge fan of writer/director Nancy Meyers. It started with What Women Want (starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt), a blast of a romantic comedy with fantasy elements. It’s one of my favorite romantic comedies of all time, though if I had to talk percentages that movie is 80% hilarity and 20% romance. Something’s Gotta Give is a bit more romantic, though the balance is probably more 60% comedy and 40% romance.

It’s safe to call Meyers a superstar when it comes to romcom writer/directors. She writes great stories, directs while remaining honest to her characters and casts A-listers. She usually rocks the box office too. Other star-clad and hilarious Nancy Meyers romcoms include It’s Complicated (with Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin) and The Holiday (with Jude Law, Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet and Jack Black.) Both are recommended, though of these two, I prefer The Holiday. Something’s Gotta Give Premise: Erica Barry (Diane Keaton) is a beautiful, accomplished and divorced playwright with a house in the Hamptons. Harry Sanborn (Jack Nicholson) is a 60-something infamous rich bachelor with a reputation for not dating women over 30. Normally, these two would never meet.

But when Erica’s daughter Marin (Amanda Peet) brings Harry to her mother’s house for a weekend getaway, Erica also happens to be there with her sister Zoe (Frances McDormand), and hilarity ensues: Erica pretty much approves of nothing about him, and Zoe sees this as a fascinating opportunity to study the relationships of men and women, and why men tend to go for much younger women. Harry can’t wait to get out of there, but when he has a heart attack right before they can have sex, he is rushed to the nearest hospital where his doctor turns out to be the gorgeous, younger Julian (Keanu Reeves). All three women are pretty smitten by how nice and pretty he is, but he is taken by Erica, whose plays he is a fan of.

Harry is in a rush to go back to the city, but with his health at risk, Julian only allows him to stay at a nearby place for a couple of weeks, which to Erica’s horror, means her house. With everyone back to the city for work, she’s left alone with Harry, and quickly discovers he is a lot more fun, charming and intelligent than she gave him credit for. And to Harry’s dismay, she’s the most interesting and fun woman he has ever met. With a growing friendship and attraction, they will have to deal with their feelings for each other, as well as where Marin, Julian, and their outlooks on romance stand on all of this. After all, Harry doesn’t know how to be a boyfriend, and Julian is the ultimate catch. What does a woman have to do, especially with a play to write?

 

* Something’s Gotta Give is original, hilarious, honest and a little quirky. And if you pay attention, it’s also a fun, modern love story for any age. The movie makes astute observations on how we can’t help when, who or how we fall for, as well as what it means to be single (and dating) in the modern age of divorce and Internet. Of course if you want to get all cynical, you can call this movie superficial in many ways. Sure, there are health problems, but who doesn’t? Everybody is either rich, or making a decent living in NYC. Marin takes antidepressants because she’s an emotional “child” of divorce but her parents broke up when she was 23.

So apart from a couple of romantic and age-related health problems, everything is peachy. So if you do want a depressed outlook on life, go watch 21 Grams. It’s a very powerful, depressing and solid movie where no one is happy. And they deal with a lot of heavy stuff. If you want a more realistic romance where people aren’t rich, or all that healthy, watch Forget Me Not, which happens to be one of my favorite romances, by the way. It’s just not that light or optimistic. But if you are ready to dive into the typical (but extremely well-written) world of romantic comedy with a more dose of reality than most (Nicholson gets to lie on the gurney a lot, and being a lovely, smart person (Julian’s character) with brilliant looks doesn’t guarantee your happy ending) where the road to the happily-ever-after is just rocky (and funny) enough, don’t miss Something’s Gotta Give.

Fun Info About Cast and Movie:

–       Diane Keaton was nominated for an Oscar for her role. She and Nicholson were nominated for Best Actress and Actor (in musical or comedy) at the Golden Globes; Diane won.

–       The budget was 80 million, but the movie made$124,728,738 domestically, and a total of $266,728,738 (boxofficemojo.com.)

–       You can download the screenplay at sellingyourscreenplay.com

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