Surprisingly smart and stylish

Rating: 9/10 (19 June 2005)

Two of the best actors out there, Brad Pitt(12 Monkeys) and Edward Norton(American History X), star in this fast paced and brutal look on men who hate what they do. It focuses on one main man(of whom we never know the real name of), Edward Norton, he's an insomniac and hasn't slept for six months. He finds out that by letting out his feelings and crying let him sleep like a baby, but when his plans are disrupted by an addicted smoker Marla(Carter), he goes right back to sleep deprivation. Norton works for a major car company whose cars aren't exactly the safest in the world. His job is to travel around the country and investigate the problems the cars are having. On one of his flights, he meets a very interesting soap salesman named Tyler Durden(Pitt). The two become friends and end up living together in a rundown old house on Paper street. To get out their anger and just let loose, they have boxing matches every week, they find it exciting. But their fun starts to attract more and more working stiffs like themselves, and soon enough, they end up having a club in an underground basement of a bar every night of the week. The club soon becomes a cult of rage, brutality, self-destruction, and mischief.
Pitt gives a strong, odd, and highly charismatic performance. He makes it just that much more fun to watch. Norton gives a very solid performance as the everyday man turned insane loose cannon. Director David Fincher's style with his movies are exquisite. His trademark cinematography and the cool, sleek music make his films fun. Ed Norton always seems to give an absolutely awesome performance in whatever he does, I believe he is one of the greatest actors out there right now. Although if it wasn't for Pitt, this film probably would have been more of an independent other than a blockbuster. All in all, 'Fight Club' is a disturbingly brutal, smart, violent, darkly funny, cool flick. It's flawless performances, swift music, cinematography, and deeply smart story make this movie a classic in my mind.