Review: ‘Gone Girl’

Adapting a much-read and admired novel to the big screen is always a risk, but here it’s a risk that pays off. This is a taut and entirely engrossing film that left me wishing I could’ve seen it without knowing the twists from having recently read the novel.

The film opens on the day of Nick and Amy Dunne’s 5th wedding anniversary. Through a series of flashbacks, based on Amy’s journal entries, we see how this couple came together and the stresses their marriage has weathered over its five-year span. Having met and lived blissfully in NYC, the couple are now residing in a small Minnesotan town after they both lost their writing jobs in the Big Apple.

The same day the couple are supposed to be celebrating their anniversary, Amy disappears.

Nick claims to have no clue as to what may have happened to Amy, but the detective in charge of the case doesn’t take long in finding fault with his story and shedding questions on the state of his marriage and the couple’s finances.

As the case against him mounts, public opinion begins to play an important role. Nick’s easy-going attitude and seeming unconcern over his missing wife put him into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. He is soon the target of hate-mongering talk-show hosts across the nation.

Through all the speculation about Nick’s innocence or guilt, Amy remains a strong presence through her diary entries weaving a very different story about the marriage than the one Nick spouts to family, friends and media.

As the film plays out, the real mystery becomes clear and it isn’t “Where is Amy Dunne?”, but “Who are these people?”.

Fincher is the perfect director to handle this material.  He controls each moment of misdirection and reveal with a deft hand, never revealing too much or too little. He appears to have little affection for the central characters and takes a deliciously cynical view of marriage and the very fine line between love and hate.

While Affleck is solid as the leading man, it’s Rosamund Pike’s chilling performance that steals the show, balancing warmth and icy coldness in a way that must have Hitchcock clawing his way out of the grave. The quirky supporting cast are also excellent, every character imbued with their own brand of abhorrence.

And that’s Gone Girl’s biggest achievement: making a cast of wholly unlikeable characters compelling and interesting enough to hold you spellbound for the film’s considerable running length.

8/10

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