Zodiac (* * * *)

It's been a long time since I have put up a movie review, I apologize to the few of you who like to read them. It's also been a long time since I have seen a movie, although I have seen a few good ones here and there. (The Departed (* * * *) and Children of Men (* * * *)) to name basically the only two. Both movies I would love to review if I ever get the time. Suffice it to say for now, they are both 4 stars and excellent movies. If you watch The Departed, watch for X's. You will know what I mean.
Anyway, I (along with Brooke and Josh) saw Zodiac over the weekend and I wanted to write a little about it. I know a few of you are expecting some comments from me on this film, although I am sure to write more than you wanted to hear this isn't as traditional as a review as you have come to expect from me.
As always there are spoilers below. Although this story is true and you can find out all you want about it anywhere, avoid my review if you don't know about the Zodiac murders and you don't want to be spoiled for the movie.

Zodiac (* * * *)

To start I would like to paraphrase from an article I read about David Fincher.

"So have you heard, Fincher is back? Run, don't walk, I am not kidding here, run, don't walk to your nearest theater and see Zodiac. It's been 5 years since we had anything from Fincher and it could be 5 years before we do again. So don't miss this opportunity."

I am giving Zodiac 4 stars, because it is an excellent movie. There is so much that is great about it, the story is so interesting and so well presented, the acting is great, the music and mood as well as the style with the cinematography.
I won't even attempt to tell you the whole story, it's way too complex. So essentially the movie is based on a two books by Robert Graysmith (Zodiac and Zodiac Unmasked) regarding the Zodiac murders in California during the 60's and 70's. Robert was a cartoonist at a newspaper in San Francisco during the time of the Zodiac murders in the area. He took it upon himself to investigate the murders and published his books based upon his experiences. The movie is also based on his experiences, Robert served as a consultant and writer for the film. Needless to say the film is very accurately based on his conclusions, although not necessarily everyone's conclusions regarding the murders. David Fincher also grew up in San Francisco during the time of the killings. There is stories all over the Internet about Zodiac, Fincher and Graysmith during this time, Google it if you want more info.
I will tell you that the story is told very well. There isn't a lot of confusion, although there are many surprises, and it's laid out for you in all of it's detail and complexity. I really felt like an investigator learning along with the characters and the movie progressed through the history of these events. As the characters made discoveries regarding the investigation, I felt like I was making the discovery. I was also very shocked at the procedures and events in investigations of that time period that would never go well today. I also felt engulfed into this time period and location. I think they did a great job of making it look like that time and getting all the minute details to make the viewer feel as if they had traveled back in time. The mood and the setting is great, it's creepy and creates a feeling of suspense and fright right off the bat. Many people worry that the story is difficult to end, because the real Zodiac killer has never been caught or even named. But they did a good job telling the story as they know it, the story has a difficult ending because the killer never is caught or even identified. But don't worry, there is still a great deal of suspense near the final minutes of the movie. In fact it's almost more scary knowing that it does end in an untraditional sense, the good guys don't necessarily win.
There are some great scenes to watch out for, this is not a movie of just dialog, you will be frightened. There is a gruesome scene of one of the murders, a stabbing on the shores of the lake. I think that scene will haunt me for several years, it's so real and so scary. One of the methods used to make it so scary was that there is no music during that scene. All of the scenes where the murders take place are frightening, but this one stood out as quite disturbing. There is also a scene involving a pregnant woman with a young child in a car. It was almost scary enough that the kid wasn't in a car seat, they didn't use them back then. But watch out for that one. Be advised that while frightening and disturbing, there really isn't a lot of gore and bloodshed in the film, it's mostly based upon the investigation and not the murders themselves.
The acting is really great. Most avid movie goers will recognize most, if not all, of the main characters in the film. A few of the roles really stood out and surprised me. I really liked Mark Ruffalo as David Toschi, the head investigator on the case. I haven't seen a lot of Ruffalo's work outside of a few romantic comedy's and he was OK in those, but he was great in this. He was interesting to watch because you could read what was going on in his head by watching his expressions. He even had a few funny moments and you could really feel that this character was a real person. Jake Gyllenhaall played Robert Graysmith in the movie and had the opportunity to work with him throughout filming. He was good and the movie centered mostly around him, you could feel his excitement as he figured out new clues. You could also see the destruction as he became more and more obsessed with the murders and less careful with his family and his safety. It showed on his face and the way he played the character. His performance was good but I really think Ruffalo stole many of the scenes they were in together. Robert Downey Jr. was good as Paul Avery, the newspapers crime reporter and Anthony Edwards played Ruffalo's parter at the beginning of the murders. I can't say that any of the acting is bad, Fincher is known to be a perfectionist and do as many takes as needed to get everything right. I don't think you will see much bad acting in any of Fincher's films, he works with good actors and expects nothing less than the best. It shows.
One of the great things about seeing a David Fincher film is that visually it really is a treat to watch. The mood of the film is influenced by great scenery and especially with lighting and music. There is such a dark and mysterious look to the film. The cinematography is fresh and interesting, it's unique and nothing like you see anywhere else. It's great for a film in which the central character, Zodiac, is so mysterious and alluding that he still hasn't been caught (If he's still living).
The Bottom Line...
Zodiac is a great movie, for those of you who love crime and serial killer dramas, this is the movie for you. In fact I would say it's the best since Silence of the Lambs, or Fincher's own Se7en. I gave the movie 4 stars because of a great story, excellent acting and of course David Finchers directing, cinematography and signature dark and mysterious mood. This will be part of my DVD collection as soon as it's released. The film does come in at a butt numbing 2 hours and 40 minutes, but it doesn't feel like it. If I had to make a criticism of the movie, I would say that the middle part of the story is a little slow, but very easy to overlook because the payoff of the last 3/4 of the movie is great. It is rated R, obviously for violence and disturbing images, drug material (Not much), some language (Very little) and brief sexual images (Although I must have missed that because I didn't notice). Of course you wouldn't want to take your kids to it, but most adults shouldn't have a problem or be offended. My recommendation is that anyone could really see this movie and enjoy it. Some may be turned off by the long run time and the R rating, don't let that deter you, this really is a great film that anyone over 18 will enjoy it.
As always if you have seen or go to see Zodiac, chime in on the comments and let me know what you think. (Josh and Brooke, this means you because you were with me and I know you have seen it and liked it)
A side note for Jeff, go out and see this and let me know what you think of your favorite directors latest film in the comments.