Zodiac

[RooJay]

So has anyone else seen this fantastic film? I tried a search and was pretty surprised to see that there seems to be no discussion of the great David Fincher's latest. This movie was of specific interest to me as many of the events took place in and around my hometown of Vallejo, CA. Growing up the Zodiac was a bit of a local boogeyman to me and others around my age having been our only known local serial killer. For those who have yet to see the movie, I give it my highest recommendation. It's a fantastically directed film about a great true life mystery, and it manages to deliver on the creeps big-time while at the same time presenting the story in a thought provoking, real world style. I thought the scene with the female motorist near Modesto to be one of the scariest and most chilling scenes I've seen in film in quite a long time.
On a personal note, I distinctly remember as a child having visited the very same ACE Hardware store and around the same time-frame shown in the film as having been the workplace of the main suspect; the suspect the film does an outstanding job of finally convincing me was the true perpetrator of the Zodiac killings. I was left with a totally chilling sense that I may very well have come in contact on several occasions with a real life boogeyman as a child.
The film also does a singularly spectacular job of portraying a very specific point in time. Everything from the set design to the casting choices to the costume design to the dialog manages to totally convince that what we are seeing takes place in the real world of the nineteen sixties/seventies Bay Area. I can think of few if any other films that have managed to capture the feeling of a time and place so completely and successfully as David Fincher does in Zodiac. I am almost willing to go on record predicting this movie for at least the best costume design Oscar for this year.
The cast was top-notch as well. I was specifically impressed with Mark Ruffalo and Jake Gyllenhaal and I was very pleased to see Anthony Edwards again as well.

[Jedi_Master_Guyute]

I saw this flick when I was in Chicago over spring break and loved it. It's really long, but that didn't bother me as I found it fascinating to go over each blip of evidence and stuff. Here is my review/info i posted on my blizog:

"Zodiac"- David Fincher's sleuth story is a pretty solid flick although it runs a shade too long on the "long" side. For the uniformed, the Zodiac Killer was a murderer who was/is responsible for about five known killings with as many as 15 or so possible other murders. The killer once claimed he was responsible for 37 murders, but investigators only agree on a handful. The film opens with the savage shootings of two young adults on a backroad in rural Vallejo, California. Flash forward about a month to the San Francisco and young cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a single father, taking care of his son while working at the Chronicle. We also meet Paul Avery (a great Robert Downey, Jr), a somewhat burned out hippie journalist who will cover the Zodiac case. The Zodiac soon begins sending cyphers and note sto the SF chronicle (as well as a handful of other papers), claiming if the cyphers aren't printed on the front page, he would start murdering people throughout the weekend. The cyphers are printed, not on the front page mind you, but they are printed and nothing seems to happen. About two months later, there is a vicious attack and murder on a couple at Lake Berryessa. The next month there is a murder of a cab driver in SF and this prompts another letter, and so on. The film is very well done with a great cast including Gyllenhaal and Downey Jr. who have some great moments together, including two great humorous scenes. The cast also includes Mark Ruffalo as Inspector David Toschi, the lead investigator of the Zodiac case and his partner, William Armstrong (a surprising Anthony Edwards- where has this guy been?). The flick is very well acted and executed and has some really crazy moments. The attacks are very brutal and one stabbing scene left the theater with their mouths gaping wide open. There are a few genuine creepy moments as well. Downey Jr is great as Avery who quickly becomes an idol of the Zodiac's anger and Gyllenhaal also shines as Graysmith, the cartoonist who soon became obsessed with the story and spent months looking over case files and evidence, trying to pinpoint who the killer really was/is. It's a great performances as you see Greysmith slowing sliding almost towards insanity as he becomes more and more infatuated wih the killer, possibly putting his new family at risk. The film runs about 2 hours and 45 minutes, which will make or break it for some folks. I found it very fascinating and engrossing as Fincher does not leave ANY stone unturnerd as he incorporates most, if not all, of the evidence, the crimes, the suspect and Greysmith's hunting for the truth. This is one of the most famous serial killers in American history and the case is still officially unsolved. In fact, after doing some more digging, I read that the man who was the prime suspect in the investigation had a few more facts that prove he might have not have been the killer. Really an interesting case and a very indepth, fascinating flick. Rating- ***1/2 out of ****

For more info the zodiac, check out: http://www.zodiackiller.com/ Pretty comprehensive site on the suspects, the victims, etc.

Great film!!