Zodiac (2007/I)

Director:

David Fincher

Writers (WGA):

James Vanderbilt (screenplay)
Robert Graysmith (book)

Release Date:

2 March 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

There's more than one way to lose your life to a killer

Plot:

A San Francisco cartoonist becomes an amateur detective obsessed with tracking down the Zodiac killer.

Plot Keywords:

Police | Zodiac Killer | Reporter | Cartoonist | Letter

Awards:

25 nominations

Cast

Jake Gyllenhaal	...	Robert Graysmith
Mark Ruffalo	...	Inspector David Toschi
Anthony Edwards	...	Inspector William Armstrong
Robert Downey Jr.	...	Paul Avery
Brian Cox	...	Melvin Belli
John Carroll Lynch	...	Arthur Leigh Allen
Richmond Arquette	...	Zodiac 1 / Zodiac 2
Bob Stephenson	...	Zodiac 3
John Lacy	...	Zodiac 4
Chloë Sevigny	...	Melanie
Ed Setrakian	...	Al Hyman
John Getz	...	Templeton Peck
John Terry	...	Charles Thieriot
Candy Clark	...	Carol Fisher
Elias Koteas	...	Sgt. Jack Mulanax

Also Known As:

Chronicles (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for some strong killings, language, drug material and brief sexual images. (also director's cut)

Runtime:

157 min | 162 min (director's cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Australia:MA | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #42944) | Singapore:NC-16 | Ireland:16 | Finland:K-15 | Germany:16 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | Norway:15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Italy:T | Argentina:13 | Portugal:M/12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Brazil:16 | India:UA | Sweden:15 | South Korea:15 | France:U (with warning) | USA:R | Malaysia:18PL (DVD) | Spain:18 | Philippines:R-13 | Japan:PG-12 | Ireland:18 (video rating)

Filming Locations:

4th Street, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Chosen by "Les Cahiers du cinéma" (France) as one of the 10 best pictures of 2007 (#05, tied with "La France").

Goofs:

Factual errors: The interior of the PSA flight boarded by the detectives and Paul Avery reveals 5-across coach seating, standard fare for a DC-9, a popular airplane in the 1960s-1970s. The lady seated behind David, however, is holding a safety card reading "727-200," an airplane which seats 6-across in coach.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Mike Mageau: Where have you been? I've been waiting since 7:00.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: The Best of 2007" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Soul Sacrifice

Class Act

First up (and it's already been said)...this film is not going to appeal to the crash-bang- wallop-attention-span-of-a-bored-gnat brigade out there. Having read a lot of the reviews here, everyone seems to be divided in two. Love it...hate it. Which way will you go?

Yes, it's long. But let's face it, this is not a film that can be wrapped up in an hour and a half. There's an awful lot of detail involved in this case. David Fincher was very thorough in his research and full marks to him. This is an excellent, compelling film for anyone interested in true crime and general detective work.

I saw this film a few hours ago and was completely absorbed by it. The opening 4th of July sequence is worthy of the ticket price alone. And I challenge anyone to listen to "Hurdy Gurdy Man" by Donovan without a cold chill running down their spine after watching this...

The main performances are excellent - Robert Downey Jr and Jake Gyllenhaal in particular are a standout. Any feminists out there won't be happy with the rather one-dimensional women's roles (and I happen to be female), but this is not what this film is about. It's about a handful of men's obsessive involvement with one case. And these men ARE utterly obsessed. And after so much taunting by the Zodiac with his letters and cyphers, who can blame them for their obsession?

As for the depiction of the murders, they are quite shocking in their brief brutality with absolutely no glamorous or excessive lingering shots of the aftermath. This makes them infinitely more real and much more disturbing...

Combine this with utterly believable dialogue, a superb soundtrack and marvellous production design and you have one classy movie. For all those tired of your average eye and brain-candy fodder...Go see. For those who can't appreciate a class act when you see it, you've missed out...