Zodiac

Collapse

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Zodiac

    I didn't find a thread on the actual movie so...

    I managed to catch a pre-screening tonight. And...


    [SPOILERS]


    Personally, I left the theatre tired after that butt load of information was dumped on me. It felt like I was there during every tedious detail, twist, and turn of the investigation. Pretty exhausting. Not sure I'd watch it again.

    But about the movie in itself, it feels like (and was billed as, seems to me) a film more about the people obsessed with the case than about the case itself. "There's more than one way to lose your life to a killer" claims the one sheet. I was expecting to see the characters' downward spiral into madness and obsession as they try to track down/figure out who the Zodiac is. Sadly, that was only about 5% of the movie. A couple of scenes showed the stress this obsession was putting on the characters' lives but the rest of the film was just facts, facts, facts. It feels like the film would've been so much better if they had really jacked up the characters' personal dramas, rather than almost completely neglecting them.

    Also, there was a point a little after the middle of the film where everything just seemed to drag with the investigation going, going, going but getting nowhere, like a car spinning its wheels in the mud.

    Anyway, all in all, it needed a lot more character development and a little less facts on the case everyone knows is unsolved.

    This is, of course, one man's opinion. It wasn't a bad movie by any means but it wasn't a great one either. It was just...exhausting. Once is more than enough per lifetime.
    Last edited by Jakkal; 03-02-2007, 12:55 PM.

  • #2
    Re: Zodiac

    It's currently at an 87% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes...so it's obviously doing something right for many people.
    Last edited by j over; 03-02-2007, 06:36 PM.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Zodiac

      Yeah, I'm such a douche for daring to dissent...I wonder if my opinion is wrong. Hmm...

      This is my impression of the film. I realize many people are going ga-ga for Zodiac and, like I said, it's not a bad movie. I was entertained throughout most of it as things moved "relatively" fast. But once it was over, I realized it wasn't "satisfying." I know a crapload about the case now, but I hardly know any of the characters, not even the main one. You could probably replace him with someone else who becomes equally obsessed and the movie really wouldn't change that much. What I'm trying to say is, the character didn't bring much character to the table.

      It opens today, anyway. I'm curious to see what DDers think of the film.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Zodiac

        Seeing it tonight so I'll chime in soon.
        http://confoundedfilms.com

        http://www.myspace.com/confoundedfilms

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Zodiac

          It would be the greatest publicity stunt EVER.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Zodiac

            I fiddled around with his cryptogram back in the day... I think the last 18 are just nonsense to make it harder to crack.

            I wanted to see the movie until I noticed the run time, 2 hours and 40 minutes? Jesus.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Zodiac

              Originally posted by Slappynipsy View Post
              I wanted to see the movie until I noticed the run time, 2 hours and 40 minutes? Jesus.
              You feel it. Trust me.

              Originally posted by boski
              Wouldn't it tho...

              Might make for a good movie premise in it's own right, too.
              haha, just to go along with it, what type of a movie would it be? A drama about how the discovery changed the viewer's life through all the publicity and now has marked him as the killer's next victim? A comedy about a lovable dope as he unwittingly overcomes every attempt by the exposed serial killer to claim vengeance?

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Zodiac

                Maybe even playing a "game" with the movie goer (if it isn't too much of a cliche). Solve the ever-harder puzzles or the next person dies or maybe the puzzles are the clues as to the next victim (though that sounds so overdone). Police try to protect the viewer but he's such a celebrity and is stalked so much that the killer could be anyone...

                Actually, I just thought of an entirely new angle to this. Pardon me if I don't post it, but I think I may have something here. It'll go into my idea file

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Zodiac

                  Saw this tonight. Did not come away disappointed. Wasn't blown away by it either. I was particularly impressed with the use of 3 protagonists, who were each given approximately 1/3 of the movie. The first clue to this was the equal billing given to all three actors in the opening credits. All were on the same title card. This probably resulted in Jakkal's dissatisfaction with character development and I agree with him. We don't know any of the 3 completely, but we know all of them partially. The trailer made it look like Jake G's story so I was surprised when he really didn't come to the foreground until the last 1/3 of the movie. That's when his obsession takes over.

                  This was beautifully shot on HD, extremely well acted by 3 guys at the top of their games, and unobtrusively directed - and that's a mouthful considering this was directed by David "Camera Through the Keyhole" Fincher. My buddy remarked as the credits rolled ... "This didn't need to be 2 hrs, 40 minutes." But then we were both hard pressed to think of anything that we would have cut to save time.

                  Was also nice to see Donal Hogue, Chloe Sevigny, and Dermot Mulroney all cast against type. Watching Robert Downey Jr matter-o-factly snort some coke was amusing as well.
                  http://confoundedfilms.com

                  http://www.myspace.com/confoundedfilms

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Zodiac

                    I too saw that this was getting an 87% positive rating at Rotten Tomatoes. But to me, it's all about personal preference. For example, everybody loved 'Crash', but I hated it. Pan's Labyrinth got rave reviews, but I felt let down by it. Oh well, that's just my opinion.

                    I'm going to see Zodiac Sunday, so I hope it doesn't disappoint. I'm kinda glad to see that they didn't stray far from the real events and create their own fantasy ending just to give it that 'Hollywood' wrap-up where the good guys get the bad guy. I hate that!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Zodiac

                      I agree, Hairy. The performances were all top notch and the directing was pretty solid. I'd really like to see some aggressive marketing towards the beginning of the awards season to remind people of this movie.

                      There we go, those were my long overdue props to the film

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Zodiac

                        A reviewer compared this to "All the President's Men", which, having now seen "Zodiac", I think was spot-on. Amazing how a nearly three-hour picture made up primarily of people talking across tables to each other can be so compelling.

                        It's a study less of murder and detection than of obsession and how it can damage perfectly decent people. Superb performances from top to bottom, and absolutely accurate for how 1969 really looked (save for a barcode on a book Jake G. was holding at one point).

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Zodiac

                          Ran into Sgt. Jack Mulanax (actor Elias Koteas) on the street this afternoon. Congratulated him on Zodiac and his turn in The Thin Red Line.
                          http://confoundedfilms.com

                          http://www.myspace.com/confoundedfilms

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Zodiac

                            Originally posted by Hairy Lime View Post
                            Ran into Sgt. Jack Mulanax (actor Elias Koteas) on the street this afternoon. Congratulated him on Zodiac and his turn in The Thin Red Line.
                            thanks for sharing.
                            "everything a writer learns about the art and craft of fiction takes just a little away from his need or desire to write at all. in the end he knows all the tricks and has nothing to say."

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Zodiac

                              Found it odd that I'd just seen his movie last night and then ran into him this afternoon 2 blocks from the theater.
                              http://confoundedfilms.com

                              http://www.myspace.com/confoundedfilms

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X