A totally brilliant, woefully underappreciated film

Rating: 10/10 (7 May 2000)

I read comments that call Fight Club depraved and I cringe. I hear people talk about its ludicrous, totally unsupported plot twist, and my jaw drops in shock and horror. THis is a brilliant film, one of the five best ever made, and I am not some knee-jerk, violence loving fanboy. I have seen this film four times, and it becomes better with every viewing. First of all, the plot twist. Without giving it away, I guarantee that if you watch carefully, you will be able to see, in hindsight, how brilliantly and perfectly the twist is set up. But you have to WATCH the movie. You cannot simply let the movie wash over you. This film requires thoughtful, attentive viewing. Secondly, the movie doesn't even come close to glorifying violence. The fight clubs are at first a mode for expressing repressed emotionality in the men who attend the fights. beating each other is the only way they can make themselves feel, so they do it. It is a symbol for greater things. The film has three stages. Ultimately, the extreme philosophy that emerges in the second act of the film is rejected. It does not glorify or encourage fighting or violence. And this is not even to mention the glorious style of this film, with its atmospheric, nearly expressionistic lighting, its extraordinarily sophisticated and complex use of the camera, and its truly amazing sound mix. This is, on all levels, a brilliant film. It has a dark streak which makes it inaccessable and susceptable to the ravings of the naive, those who see a violent act and automatically begin to cry out about irresponsability in filmaking and everything else dangerous to film form. This film is a ten, an A+, four stars.