Film Filter: Off- Many times that I have visited IMDB to look up info or get a photo for a movie to put on my blog, the movie Zodiac came up underneath as "People who liked this also liked..." I had thought about watching it for awhile, so when I saw that it was on Netflix I immediately pushed play.
Pros- For being as long as it was, it really didn't seem that long. Maybe it's because I saw it over the span of two days, but I think I would have felt the same way had I watched it all in one fell swoop. For some reason, it grabbed my attention from beginning to end, likely because it felt like one big Law & Order SVU episode.
As I have stated many times, movies that are based on true events are more intriguing to me than those that aren't. That doesn't mean that they're better, per se, as evidenced with the Alphabet Killer. Similar to The Conjuring, though, I enjoyed looking up some of the research after I finished watching the movie. Although this follows Robert Graysmith as he writes a novel about the Zodiac, it was interesting to read that there have been many books published on the subject, and MANY people have been suspected of the killings, not just one.
One of the things I found interesting is the shift of focus on the three main protagonists in the film. All three actors, Downey, Ruffalo, and Gyllenhaal, did a commendable job with their respective roles. I love Robert Downey Jr., and I thought he not only portrayed the character well, but also the evolution of an employed journalist to a drug and alcohol abusing sloth. He played them both well, and the change in his character due to the obsession of the case was evident. Gyllenhaal was cast perfectly, and Ruffalo did a good job as well. Getting back to the shift of focus, usually three pretty big named actors "starring" in a film have to share the screen time, so one is more secondary than the other. Due to the film being so long, and to the story taking place over decades, each one got a pretty decent amount of screen time. Downey controlled the beginning part of the film, with Gyllenhaal's help, and Ruffalo commanded most of the middle, while Gyllenhaal took over from there to the ending. It was interesting to see three different perspectives and approaches to the crime.
Lastly, one of the minor things that I really enjoyed was the steps taken to make the movie feel realistic. From the scenery, to the automobiles and wardrobe, to the documents with typos from the typewriter, every attempt was made to make this film feel like it took place in the late 1960's and 1970's.
Cons- First and foremost, this movie should not really be classified as a horror flick. Although there are elements that are present in the movie that appear to be of this genre, it's really more of a murder-mystery/thriller. For those that are looking for a scary movie, don't push play. If you're looking for something thought provoking, it might be more up your alley.
One of the things I found annoying was the lack of addressing Gyllenhaal's wife or their marital problems. Now, yes, I know that this was not designed to be the focus of the film, but it was clear that there were issues going on. As a side note, I loved the part where she had an envelope for him, and it wasn't the expected divorce papers. It just felt disjointed to me that Gyllenhaal's character puts their family safety "first" but is so obsessed that it's really all just talk. That seems to be how the real story goes though, so there's not really a lot I can contend with.
The murder scenes were all really awkward. The dialogue always felt forced, and it was shocking to me that NO ONE knew better than to: stare at someone clearly stalking you, pull over while someone behind you is flashing their lights/honking, etc.
P.S.- Speaking of the woman that nearly got killed in the car with him...why did NO ONE think to interview her? She sat right next to him and had a conversation with him. Unless I missed something that dismissed that scenario as not being the Zodiac killer, I feel like that's a pretty clear path to try to take in solving the investigation.
Wrap up- This movie is a complicated one to review, for sure. It wasn't a bad movie, but it also wasn't scary.
No comments:
Post a Comment