David Fincher's Zodiac has been a long time in the making, Fincher himself spending 18-months reading and examining case files of the Zodiac killer's purported crimes, and aiming to create a work that was highly accurate to the actual events themselves. On the heels of overwhelmingly positive reviews, yet with detractors however claiming the film drags its feet and offers an unsatisfying conclusion, does Fincher deliver the goods again, as he so frequently does?
A resounding "yes" is in order, to say the least - Zodiac is one of the most visceral, realistic and engrossing serial killer films ever committed to screen. All of the literature based on the Zodiac killer is brought kicking and screaming to life in a project that will likely be considered a future cult classic by those willing to give it a chance. However, if you go in expecting a thrills-per-second, explosion-filled twist-fest, you will invariably be disappointed. Zodiac is above any kind of reproach to that effect, and instead relies on a tight script, utterly flawless direction, and a historical accuracy almost entirely amiss in Hollywood.
Zodiac's thrilling opening scene (which is among the best in recent memory), accompanied by Donovan's appropriately creepy "Hurdy Gurdy Man", lays the atmospheric groundwork for the 158 minutes to follow. Fincher's film evidently wastes little time, with the Zodiac splattering his first victims mere minutes into the picture in a frenzied attack, and it takes little more than this to convince one that Fincher has, once again, served up something special. Fincher's seeming accuracy to the period of the late 60s and early 70s is staggering; the cars, the clothes, and the soundtrack all exude that vibe brilliantly, and it is an unadulterated pleasure to bathe in.
Following the initial murder, the Zodiac begins to play a cat-and-mouse game with police investigators Dave Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) and William Armstrong (Anthony Edwards), as well as San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal) and reporter Paul Avery (Robert Downey Jr.). Graysmith in particular develops an interest which slowly becomes a potentially volatile obsession. Through all of the murders, and 2500 suspects interviewed, the film is ultimately, by its climax, a film concerned with the obsessions of everyone involved (although none more than Graysmith), and how the case came close to destroying the lives of those surrounding it. As the film's tagline itself states - "There's more than one way to lose your life to a killer".
The real Robert Graysmith wrote the book on which the film is based, and whilst mostly taking the same stance as Graysmith's book, leaves the audience with room to draw their own conclusions. Rather than overtly forcing the audience to believe any one thing, the evidence, whilst intrinsically including some of Graysmith's own views, are ultimately laid down in front of the viewer for them to decide for themselves. It is this means by which some have deemed the climax unsatisfying, but if one considers that Fincher has strived for factual accuracy, then he is surely above providing a forced unmasking and a quick clean-up to a terrorising boogeyman.
As mentioned earlier, the direction here is truly arresting. Whilst shooting on HD was hardly necessary, and doesn't exactly suit the film's tone (as this is essentially a "period" piece, it seems something of an odd choice when compared to shooting on film), there is a high abundance of beautiful shots throughout. Any time Fincher focuses on the Golden Gate Bridge, one could easily take one of these frames and mount it on their wall as a work of act. Fincher rarely wastes a frame, yet he does often choose to cut away when he could linger for a few more seconds. Nevertheless, Fincher uses his shots to convey a foreboding mood largely unmatched in modern cinema, particularly in the much-lauded "basement scene" that you'll know when you see.
Performance-wise, the whole deal is impressive. The Oscar buzz has already been stirring about Robert Downey Jr. for "Best Supporting Actor" as crime journalist Paul Avery, and I wouldn't contest this. There's surely something therapeutic about Downey playing a character as reliant on life's indulgences as Avery, and it shows through and through. Gyllenhaal finds a career best in his portrayal of Graysmith, and Chloe Sevigny is welcome in her supporting role as Graysmith's love interest. Fortunately, Fincher doesn't suffocate the bread and butter of the film with a clichd love story, but instead the passages of time (spanning four decades in 158 minutes) gloss over it whilst still providing a glimpse into Graysmith's strained family life.
Zodiac is a procedural thriller that, whilst not delivering the thrills and spills of more populist Hollywood cinema, is utterly compelling, both if you're highly interested in the Zodiac case, or are merely a fan of Fincher (and even if you're not). I'd be surprised if anything came along in the rest of 2007 that could touch this, and if so, it has its work cut out for it. Fincher - I salute you in creating an atmospheric, exciting and genuinely engrossing feature that will likely suffer in silence for a few years before resurfacing as a contemporary classic.