Gone Girl

Expectations:

Oscar season is here, folks! No more mediocrity... No more superheroes... Not quite as much mindless movie-watching... The world is a better place! And, to start it all off, we get an exciting film from the great David Fincher... Gone Girl. Add the excitement for Gone Girl to the amazing MLB Playoff games and the insane College Football weekend, and the last few days have really been quite impressive (from an entertainment perspective). Not that entertainment is the answer to every world problem, but nobody needs to be thinking about ISIS all of the time. Although I knew very little about what would unfold in Gone Girl's thrilling plot, my expectations were relatively high, due to the praise that the film is receiving and the fact that David Fincher is an amazing filmmaker. If you've never seen The Social Network, I forbid you to watch another film until you have done so. Now that we have that out of the way, let's talk about Gone Girl...

Plot:
The complexity of the trickery used throughout Gone Girl was absolutely thrilling. While the whodunnit could have been guessed at any point, there is no doubt that uncertainty would have prevailed. But, looking back on how I felt during the film, the biggest problem was that I didn't know if I could actually trust the answer to the whodunnit. Unfortunately, I think that struggle took away a bit from the revelation. However, the events that followed were so complex and thrilling that I could care less. The direction of the unfolding of the story was great, and I think the story was meant to be visualized by David Fincher. If you've never truly appreciated a director and what he or she brings to the plate in the filmmaking world, just watch Gone Girl's thrilling murder scene (also note the amazing score). That's all I can give you without spoiling everything.

Characters:
Well, let's just get down to business...

Negatives:
While Neil Patrick Harris's Desi Collings was a necessary and interesting character, I don't know that Harris was the perfect casting decision. He certainly played the character how it was meant to be played, but there was just something that wasn't quite satisfying about his performance, in my opinion. The only character that I thought was a bit misused was Emily Ratajkowski's Andie Hardy, who I cannot really discuss. Just think about it, once you figure out who she is...

Positives:
Where to start?... How about with the lovely couple! Ben Affleck's Nick and Rosamund Pike's Amazing Amy were absolutely great characters, and each of their performances were spot-on. Unfortunately, I can't talk about them too much, but be sure to let me know what you think! On a much, much smaller scale, I was greatly impressed with Scoot McNairy's performance as Tommy O'Hara. This guy has huge star-potential. He will win an Oscar, one day... Just wait and see!

My absolute favorite character, however, was Kim Dickens' Detective Rhonda Boney, who I truly anticipated that I would HATE. Her attitude annoyed the crap out of me in the trailers, but she ended up being such an amazing example of sound justice. Add to that the fact that there were crazy people running all around her, and she may just look like the most sane character of 2014.

Conclusion:
Well, if you want to quit worrying about the "problems of the world," I would suggest watching Gone Girl. Trust me, your worries will quickly refocus on your neighbors' home or maybe even YOUR VERY OWN BEDROOM! Honestly, I can't remember the last time I was so baffled at the psyche of one character. While the character in question is much different, the unbelievably real and frightening reactions of this character brought me back to the bafflement that overcame me while watching Theodore Twombly in Her. The likelihood that anybody else had that connection is minimal, but I thought it should be shared. Throughout the film, when I thought a silver lining was on its way, the clouds quickly darkened.  Of course, this review has been fairly vague, in order to avoid spoiling the film, but I will say that I was on the edge of my seat throughout. If you enjoy any of David Fincher's mystery thrillers, you are sure to enjoy Gone Girl. If you have somehow managed to avoid watching any of Fincher's mystery thrillers, Gone Girl would be a great place to start (only because The Social Network is not really a mystery). The last few months of 2014 are sure to be filled with exciting films, and I hope that many of them can measure up to this awesome, awesome film. I give Gone Girl 4.02 out of 5 stars. 

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Expectations:
When I first heard about these books being turned into movies, I was a bit leery to watch. I thought it might be a bit intense, and I knew the rape scene was in the movie, which just kinda freaked me out. I certainly didn't wanna see that. But, the trailer was extremely enticing, and I love a good mystery thriller that really makes you think. A lot of Oscar hype has been swarming around this movie, which usually means it will at least have a good storyline and characters. David Fincher, who directed The Social Network last year, is a phenomenal director. Rooney Mara just looked exciting and intriguing with the hair and piercing thing going on. Now that I have named all of this stuff, I don't understand why I doubted myself in watching The Dragon Tattoo...

Plot:
As I said, I love a good, thrilling mystery, which is what I expected with this movie. The entire movie revolved around the Vanger family, that had a family member who was murdered like thirty years ago. The family was at odds with one another, so Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer) hired an investigative journalist named Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) to settle the mystery of the murder and figure out who the murderer was. The main storyline revolves around Mikael, and eventually Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara), investigating the Vanger family and the murder. Now, I certainly enjoyed the storyline and the investigation, but I felt like the ending to the investigation was a bit boring. I wanted to be blown of my feet, and I just felt like I was watching a good episode of CSI or something, which was very disappointing.

Best Scene: There is a scene where Lisbeth gets back at the man who rapes her, and it is serious and funny at the same time. She is extremely clever. I wouldn't mess with her.

Characters:
The characters in this movie absolutely made the movie. Daniel Craig was great as Mikael, and, of course Mara was extremely great as Lisbeth. There were also many good actors that played members of the Vanger family, such as Plummer and Stellan Skarsgard. The relationship between all of the characters was very good, especially between Lisbeth and Mikael. Their relationship was very unpredictable and awkward at times, but they were just so much fun to watch.

Best Character: Lisbeth Salander, played by Rooney Mara, was the obvious choice for best character. Although I didn't expect it, Mikael was kind of the main character. He was great, but the movie was at it's best only when Mara was on screen. Most times she didn't even have to say anything. She was just that mysterious and intriguing.

Worst Character: Bjurman, played by Yorick van Wageningen, was the man who raped Lisbeth. He was her assigned state employee, who dealt with getting her money, because she was declared mentally incompetent. He wasn't awful, but he just didn't quite seem creepy enough or something.

Conclusion:
I certainly don't know how the movie is compared to the books, because I don't read, but I do know that you can't really blame the lame ending to the investigation on director David Fincher or the screenwriters. Aside from that lame ending, this movie is phenomenal. Great characters and great mystery makes for a great movie. The relationship between Mikael and Lisbeth becomes a great focus in the movie and really is intriguing, which adds an extra element to the film. The rape scene was very intense, but it was necessary in building the character up, in my opinion at least. I don't think this movie is a best picture kind of movie, but I enjoyed it. I really do want to know what happens next, but I doubt I will make the effort to read the books, due to my literature laziness. I give The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo 3.56 out of 5 stars.