Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, Carrie Coon, Kim Dickens, Patrick Fugit, and Tyler Perry
Directed by: David Fincher
Screenplay by: Gillian Flynn
Based on the novel by Gillian Flynn
For those of you who are married, don't let your relationship get to this point. It's just not healthy for anybody.
Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) is an unemployed journalist. He is in a difficult marriage with Amy Elliot Dunne (Rosamund Pike), a trust fund woman upon who's life the best-selling book series written by her parents, Amazing Amy is based. Together, they lived in New York, where they first met. But now, they have relocated to Nick's home town of North Carthage, Missouri, mostly to take care of Nick's sick mother. While there, Nick and his sister, Margo (Carrie Coon) open a bar, appropriately named The Bar, using Amy's trust fund money.
It is the morning of their fifth wedding anniversary and Nick goes to The Bar for a few hours. Upon returning home, he finds that Amy has gone missing. The scene shows that there has been a struggle and that someone has lost a lot of blood. Nick calls the police who begin investigating the scene. For days, the investigation continues and there is much evidence to show that Nick may in fact have killed his wife. But while there is evidence to support this argument, it is not proof that Nick has done such a thing. Within just a few days, Amy's disappearance becomes an incredibly high profile case, playing out all across America by becoming the leading news story almost every night, putting Nick under a lot of pressure and scrutiny. So, if you want to know what happens to Nick and what really happens to Amy, you'll just have to watch this film.
I'm starting to get into the habit of reading the book before the movie comes out, and this was a book that I was not sure about reading for a long time. I'm not always interested in reading about murder mysteries because I'm always afraid of missing something, especially something important. I am so glad that I picked up this book before the movie came out because I simply could not put it down. Gone Girl is one of the best books I've read in a long time and one of the best movies I've seen all year.
I'm also happy that Gillian Flynn, the author of the book, is also the screenwriter for the film. I believe this is one of the reasons the film stays so close to the book. The book has a great deal of detail and it's hard to believe that the film contains almost all of that detail. After all, the film is two and a half hours long. But, of course, there are still things missing. The only item I notice that is missing in particular is the character, Hilary Handy, who has a small role in the book. She is a friend of Amy's who is a suspect in her disappearance. I don't believe her name shows up once in the film.
Ben Affleck delivers a very strong performance in this film, perhaps one of the strongest of his career. The star of the show, however, is Rosamund Pike. She is completely electrifying as Amy, and certainly should be nominated for Best Actress when it comes time for the award season. She portrays the crazy woman that Amy is incredibly well.
If you have seen other films that David Fincher has directed, such as, Zodiac, the American version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, or The Social Network, you know that he has taken audiences on thrilling adventures and dark places. Gone Girl is no different, however it may be the darkest and most disturbing place that he has taken audiences. It is difficult to say why without giving away the story, so I will not attempt to do so.
All I can say is that this is one of the must-see films of the year. There have not been many so far in 2014, but this is one of the few that I will deem "must-see". The novel has also been one of the best selling novels in the last few years, and after reading it, I can see why. So, if you do plan to see the film, spend some time reading the book first. It won't make the film seem quite as long as it otherwise may. And, a word of advice when it comes to reading the book; make sure you have plenty of time on your hands when you sit down to read it because you won't want to put it down.
Gone Girl is one of my favorite films of the year, so I'm giving it an A.
Directed by: David Fincher
Screenplay by: Gillian Flynn
Based on the novel by Gillian Flynn
For those of you who are married, don't let your relationship get to this point. It's just not healthy for anybody.
Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) is an unemployed journalist. He is in a difficult marriage with Amy Elliot Dunne (Rosamund Pike), a trust fund woman upon who's life the best-selling book series written by her parents, Amazing Amy is based. Together, they lived in New York, where they first met. But now, they have relocated to Nick's home town of North Carthage, Missouri, mostly to take care of Nick's sick mother. While there, Nick and his sister, Margo (Carrie Coon) open a bar, appropriately named The Bar, using Amy's trust fund money.
It is the morning of their fifth wedding anniversary and Nick goes to The Bar for a few hours. Upon returning home, he finds that Amy has gone missing. The scene shows that there has been a struggle and that someone has lost a lot of blood. Nick calls the police who begin investigating the scene. For days, the investigation continues and there is much evidence to show that Nick may in fact have killed his wife. But while there is evidence to support this argument, it is not proof that Nick has done such a thing. Within just a few days, Amy's disappearance becomes an incredibly high profile case, playing out all across America by becoming the leading news story almost every night, putting Nick under a lot of pressure and scrutiny. So, if you want to know what happens to Nick and what really happens to Amy, you'll just have to watch this film.
I'm starting to get into the habit of reading the book before the movie comes out, and this was a book that I was not sure about reading for a long time. I'm not always interested in reading about murder mysteries because I'm always afraid of missing something, especially something important. I am so glad that I picked up this book before the movie came out because I simply could not put it down. Gone Girl is one of the best books I've read in a long time and one of the best movies I've seen all year.
I'm also happy that Gillian Flynn, the author of the book, is also the screenwriter for the film. I believe this is one of the reasons the film stays so close to the book. The book has a great deal of detail and it's hard to believe that the film contains almost all of that detail. After all, the film is two and a half hours long. But, of course, there are still things missing. The only item I notice that is missing in particular is the character, Hilary Handy, who has a small role in the book. She is a friend of Amy's who is a suspect in her disappearance. I don't believe her name shows up once in the film.
Ben Affleck delivers a very strong performance in this film, perhaps one of the strongest of his career. The star of the show, however, is Rosamund Pike. She is completely electrifying as Amy, and certainly should be nominated for Best Actress when it comes time for the award season. She portrays the crazy woman that Amy is incredibly well.
If you have seen other films that David Fincher has directed, such as, Zodiac, the American version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, or The Social Network, you know that he has taken audiences on thrilling adventures and dark places. Gone Girl is no different, however it may be the darkest and most disturbing place that he has taken audiences. It is difficult to say why without giving away the story, so I will not attempt to do so.
All I can say is that this is one of the must-see films of the year. There have not been many so far in 2014, but this is one of the few that I will deem "must-see". The novel has also been one of the best selling novels in the last few years, and after reading it, I can see why. So, if you do plan to see the film, spend some time reading the book first. It won't make the film seem quite as long as it otherwise may. And, a word of advice when it comes to reading the book; make sure you have plenty of time on your hands when you sit down to read it because you won't want to put it down.
Gone Girl is one of my favorite films of the year, so I'm giving it an A.
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