Films Crime/Gangster Zodiac (2007) | Zodiac (2007) |
|
|
|
| Written by Daniel Cann | |
| Thursday, 22 January 2009 | |
This film is based on the true story of a notorious serial killer that terrorised the Bay area of San Francisco and the manhunt that resulted. The killer sends letters and ciphers to the newspaper ‘The San Francisco Chronicle’ boasting of the crimes he has committed and of the ones yet to come. Working for the paper are reporter Paul Avery (Robert Downey Jr) and cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal). The two become deeply involved in the case over the years and it clearly takes its toll on both. Assigned to the case are world-weary and cynical Inspectors David Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) and William Armstrong (Anthony Edwards). As events from the film unfold we see these men becoming more and more drawn into Zodiac’s twisted world, the case becoming an obsession for some that completely takes over their lives.
The attention to period detail is excellent as the viewer is transported back to 1969 through to the seventies as the killings increase and become more random. The sense of fear and paranoia in the city of San Francisco is palpable especially after Zodiac threatens to destroy a school bus carrying children. It really is a city under siege. The acting is first rate and all concerned are utterly believable. The setting is at a particularly bleak time in America and it shows. The film is reminiscent of films such as ‘All The President’s Men’ in both look and tone. I found myself being totally drawn into the world it portrayed. The viewer is made to feel like a detective as well and despite its long run time it moves at a fast pace. Director David Fincher (‘Fight Club’ ‘Seven’) has produced a career best work here as he manages to convey a real sense of menace and he sustains intrigue and suspense through the films duration. At no time does the film sensationalise or ‘Hollywoodise.’ This is a superior fact-based thriller that will have its audience on edge throughout. You feel that you are with the detectives and news reporters as they try to solve the case and catch the elusive Zodiac. It is an era that had no mobile phones, computers, emails etc. Faxes are ‘state of the art’ and some police departments are still without this new gadget as the film points out. This is a bygone era with typewriters, clunky telephones and people chain-smoking. Small details like this transport you back in time. Chloe Sevigny deserves credit too for her supporting role as Graysmith’s long suffering wife. In fact I would go so far to say that this is a career high for all involved. This is top-drawer entertainment excellent filmmaking and acting in a thriller that is suspenseful rather than gratuitous, quite simply the best of this genre for years. |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|