Area 77

I went to see Zodiac last night at the movie theater. I heard about this movie about a year ago when I became super obsessed about Jake Gyllenhaal instead of just obsessed. This true-events story interested me as well. I love crime-related suspense movies. Being a detective has got to be the coolest thing in the world.

The Zodiac was a serial killer in Southern California who claimed to have killed 37 people from the late 60s through the late 70s. However, only seven have been confirmed to be his victims. But what’s striking about this story is that Zodiac has never been caught even though extensive investigation of evidence and of the infamous letters to newspaper editors.

I really really loved the cast. Jake Gyllenhaal played Robert Graysmith, the cartoonist that became somewhat obsessed with trying to figure out who the Zodiac was. Mark Ruffalo played the main investigator on the case. He did a really great job. I don’t like him at all but I can easily say that Robert Downey, Jr. was just perfect for the querky and eccentric Paul Avery, a journalist that worked with Graysmith at the San Francisco Chronicle.

The movie was kind of like two parts in one. The first part is about the first couple of killings and the letters Zodiac sent. Jake Gyllenhaal was almost uninvolved in the whole first hour and a half. The remaining time, about an hour and 15 minutes (yes it’s a LONG movie), was about Graysmith’s research and obsession. It was a long movie but it was never boring or repetitive.

David Fincher directed this movie. You might remember him from Se7en and Fight Club. You can tell that Fincher tried to make sure that the violence in Zodiac was as non-fictional as possible. Which, as film critic Richard Roeper said, “makes it more chilling.”

The story ends with two possible outcomes. I still don’t know what I think it might be.

I always know I just watched a good movie when I go back and research online for the movie’s topic. ZodiacKiller.com and Zodiac Killer were the top two sites I found.

I gave this movie a half less star because I think that although Jake did a good job at the parts where him being a father was irrelevant, he was just too young. If it was me, I wouldn’t have included so much of Graysmith’s family life. “He’s too young, he’s too young” kept going through my head. But then again, it was important to see how his relationships changed as he got deeper and deeper into the case. I guess I am a bit indifferent. I think that either Mark Ruffalo or Robert Downey, Jr. will be considered for Best Supporting Actor awards.

Bottom line, go see it. And don’t buy a drink at the consession stand.

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 15th, 2007 at 2:06 am and is filed under TV/Movies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.