Zodiac: Great, though not traditionally Fincheriffic

Just got back from the Zodiac matinee this afternoon - it’s a great film, though it is pretty long. It combines Fincher’s incredibly methodical style of shooting with the diligence of a documentarian. The film is most similar not to Se7en, Fincher’s earlier serial killer masterpiece, but rather to All the President’s Men - the careful pursuit of a hidden enemy. (I can’t claim credit for the initial comparison to President’s Men - the A.V. Club had it first.) Much like All the President’s Men, it can seem rather long at times, but it is worth the wait.

Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo, and Jake Gyllenhaal are all excellent in their performances as a San Francisco Chornicle reporter, a SFPD detective, and a Chronicle cartoonist.  It is odd seeing John Carroll Lynch, a.k.a. TV Drew Carey’s cross dressing brother, as a main Zodiac Killer suspect. Brian Cox has a memorable few scenes as San Francisco attorney Melvin Belli, and the always great character actor Philip Baker Hall plays a handwriting expert.

It’s great seeing Fincher lavish over 70’s era San Francisco, and seeing the Embarcadero highway in all of it’s “glory.” The couple of Herb Caen references also hit the spot. Since the film makes several time leaps due to the extended nature of the investigation, Fincher makes extensive use of onscreen text, though occasionally you get a great transition sequence, like when we see the Transamerica Pyramid emerge from the ground, floor by floor, window by window. Apparently, there was a musical montage that covered a four year gap in the film, but Fincher was forced to replace it with a mere caption because of time restraints.

If you grew to love Fincher because of his flashy gimmicks, then you might be a bit disappointed here, though when they show up, it’s to great effect. Though most of the film is shot in a straightforward fashion, there’s a scene in the Chronicle newsroom where Fincher revisits the faux-Ikea “Furni” scene from Fight Club, where characters walk through zodiac symbols and Chronicle articles seen hovering in midair. It’s great, and it reminds you that Fincher hasn’t forgotten to have fun, he’s just exercising some restraint.

Go see Zodiac. It’s a crying shame it’s going to be slaughtered by Wild Hogs.