GONE GIRL (2014) ***
Nick (Ben Affleck) seems like your typically unhappy married man whose life is put under a microscope when his seemingly perfect wife Amy (Rosamund Pike) goes missing. Pretty soon, townsfolk, the police, and (thanks to a Nancy Grace-inspired newscaster) the nation thinks he’s a murderer. His wife loves mysteries, and as part of an anniversary present to Nick she had set up clues to her whereabouts. He dutifully follows the clues, hoping to find answers, but is she the one pulling the strings?
Director David Fincher is in the same mode he was in when he made The Game. Both films involve twisty plots and leading men who are sent on demented scavenger hunts in order to “learn a lesson”. Unlike that flick, Gone Girl’s twists hold up to closer scrutiny. It is also missing a shaggy dog ending that undermined The Game’s effectiveness. Instead, the ending (which I would not dream of spoiling) is rather downbeat, depressing, and even a bit tragic.
Not all of this works. Some of the plot twists are obvious, and the film runs on about a half hour longer that it really should’ve. The thing that keeps you engaged is the way that Fincher and screenwriter/author Gillian Flynn plays with the audience’s sympathies. One moment, we despise Nick for what (we think) happened. Once more of the story is revealed, he becomes more and more of an unlikely hero.
Affleck is ideal for this sort of thing. He tries to keep a stiff upper lip, even when he’s being accused of heinous deeds. I especially liked how he tried to maintain his composure throughout the nightmarish situation. However, the people around him perceive his composure as cold-bloodedness, which makes them more afraid of him.
Pike is great too. I don’t want to spoil anything, but she really goes all-out on this one. She plays up all the different aspects of her character extremely well. Her scenes with Neil Patrick Harris (who plays her creepy ex) in particular are unsettling. The gusto in which she throws herself into these scenes is quite admirable.