*** Official ZODIAC Review Thread (1 Viewer)

[Quentin]

A wonderful film to study the craft. Meticulously and perfectly crafted in every minute detail. Man, Fincher is a real talent.

And, the performances are great to enjoy - I'm a big Ruffalo fan, and he delivers in spades.

But, I don't think 20 minutes could be cut to make this film a great one as Adam suggests. I believe Fincher when he claims it was painful to cut from 3 hours to 2.5 because the major fault of this film is that it is, in fact, TWO films in one. And, not intertwined films. Two separate but linked films back-to-back. One begins, ends, then the other begins and ends. And, they have different lead performances!

The first film is vitally important to the second one as backstory...but, tons of craftsment have managed to make films over the years without illustrating the entire backstory of a film. I think it could have been done here. I think the trick to focusing this film would be to take the 3 hour cut, snip it in half, and then add about 20 minutes of the first film as backstory to the second film.

Still, worth seeing.

 

[JonZ]

I thought it was excellent. A great study of what police work was like before DNA,computers,etc

3 &1/2 out of 4 :star:s from me.

Despite all the info given in this film, theres still alot missing

PS A new Zodiac letter was discovered last week. It was put aside and thought of as a hoax until someone going through the old files recently took it out. It is thought to be authentic. The Chronicles is running a article on it sunday.

"It's a "Happy Holidays" greeting card, mailed from Eureka California in December 1990. Not sure which day in December. The envelope is red and it's one of those "From your secret pal" cards, similar to the Halloween card Zodiac sent Paul Avery in 1970. One stamp was used. No "Zodiac" name, nor cross-circle symbol.

Inside the card was a xerox of two USPS keys on a keychain. The keys were numbered and a strange object, possibly a penlight, was attached to the keychain. Nothing was written inside the card, only on the envelope. "

 

[Chuck Mayer]

The films merits it's own review thread, but I'll pop mine in here.

Meticulous, gripping, and exquisitely shot. Excellent performances in a pitch perfect police procedural. It's been 5 years since Fincher directed a film, and that's been a LONG wait. He's too good to spend that much time on the shelf. The composition, structure, lighting, sound, etc....everything is extremely well-done. With only his camerawork and lighting, Fincher stages a few of the most tense scenes I have ever seen in this film.

I could go on and on with praise. Some will find it tedious and slow. I consider it methodical. But it's the first great film of 2007, and what a way to kick it off.

10/10,
Chuck

 

[Charlie Kaus]

I saw it tonight and I really liked it. I agree it felt like 2 movies rather than one esp. after the 4 years later part but I was not disappointed at all. Here's hoping that Fincher can get his true vision for the movie out in a directors cut DVD.

 

[Robert Crawford]

This thread is now the Official Review Thread for "Zodiac". Please post all HTF member reviews in this thread.

Any other comments, links to other reviews, or discussion items will be deleted from this thread without warning!

If you need to discuss those type of issues then I have designated an Official Discussion Thread.



Crawdaddy

 

[MattFini]

I saw this one last night and absolutely loved it.

Expertly crafted by David Fincher, I loved his meticulous attention to detail. The Zodiac investigation was recreated brilliantly in this film (I think so, anyway, I wasn't born until '79) right down to the mention of how McQueen took Toschi's holster look from him for "Bullet".

The Zodiac's crimes are brutal and horrifying as they should be, and the cast is excellent. I was particulalry blown away by Ruffalo's turn as Toschi. A terrific performance, no doubt. Gyllenhall was great as well, his timidity was well honed and believable. Downey was good, but still played Robert Downey Jr.

I'm glad to see so much praise here. I can confidently say that this one will be on my year-end list nine months from now. I've been waiting for this film for years and David Fincher more than fulfilled my expectations.

Highly recommended.

 

[TravisR]

I don't have much to add other than that this was a really great movie on all levels.

Was I the only one who loved seeing the 1970's/1980's Paramount logo at the head of the movie?

 

[Tim Glover]

Just got back...I don't know...just really didn't do it for me. At times, yes, but in the middle and about 3/4 the way it bogs down some. I certainly don't have a short attention span and like it when characters are given enough time to care about ect...but Zodiac needed some trimming.

The acting was good, especially Mark Ruffalo, who is becoming a really fine actor.

I think I have to agree with James Berardinelli's comments for the most part.

I nearly forgot Robert Downey. He was very good and most of the audience today laughed rather loud when we see the "I'm not Avery" buttons. ...that was genius there.

Effective, but not memorable. In fact I was wanting it to end.

7.5/10.

 

[Mike Graham]

Really, really enjoyed the hell out of this --- this may well be Fincher's most accomplished work yet.

And I loved the:
sequence where the writing was super imposed over the office walls as the letters began to pour in over and over again...reminiscent of the catalogue sequence in Fight Club, but very exciting in its own right

Yes, the film is long, and associating it with JFK may not be far off...but I'm amazed by how much I enjoyed it. Definitely want to see it in a theater again.

 

[Craig S]

I thought Zodiac was absolutely brilliant.

The level of craft & attention to detail on display here is second-to-none (loved the reference to Marvin Belli's "Star Trek" appearance). Fincher absolutely nailed the look & feel of the 70s. And as a police procedural, it felt completely authentic.

The performances were superb all-around. In addition to those praised above (Ruffalo, Gyllenhall, Downey), I'd give kudos to Chloe Sevigny, Elias Koteas, Brian Cox, Anthony Edwards (good to see him again after his long post-"ER" hiatus), and especially John Carroll Lynch, who is chilling as prime Zodiac suspect Arthur Leigh Allen.

Zodiac is (for me anyway) clearly the best film of the young year.

 

[Chris]

I just got back from the theater and caught this film this afternoon. Way better then I thought it would be. What got to me was how effective the pacing and tone of the film was. The way in which scenes were laid out and the incredibly effective soundtrack. Great stuff.

 

[Patrick Sun]

What's interesting to me is how easily Fincher can change gears at the drop of a hat. Fincher does the mundane rather effortlessy, and then when it's needed, the tension gets ratcheted up in spurts, and doesn't overwhelm the pacing of basically a marathon to find the Zodiac killer (with 2 sets of investigations, one being Ruffalo's Toschi and his cop partner Armstrong, and the other being Gyllenhaal's Graysmith. This was one of the fastest moving 2 hour, 40 minutes films I've ever seen. It's mainly plot, plot, plot, with just enough change of pace to keep track of the personal toll the hunt for the Zodiac killer takes on the principal players in this film.

The cast is very good, Brian Cox is so very versatile as he ages like fine wine. Ruffalo, Gyllenhaal, and Downey, Jr. are good (though Downey, Jr. can do the self-medicating/drunk stuff in his sleep), with Anthony Edwards providing a very lowkey supporting performance. I did find it funny when the film jumps ahead 4 years in one stretch, and most of the characters have their hairstyle changed to a more contemporary look, but Edwards' character's hair doesn't (because it's a wig, still, they might have let it grow out a little more, or something).

I give it 3.5 stars, or a grade of B+.

 

[TravisR]

I saw it again today with a buddy and I was surprised that it seemed to move faster the second time through.

 

[Rhett_Y]

Just saw this one today. I really liked it alot. The movie didn't seem long to me at all.


To me the most engrossing scene of the whole movie is the couple that is tied up and then you see the zodiac stabbing the male in the back and the female in the back and in the front. I can still see the pain of the female's face.......

One of the best I have seen in a very long time.