My favorite movie of all time.

Rating: 10/10 (5 February 2002)

I'm now going to try to explain to everyone why this is easily the best movie of the past decade.
There is no question that this movie is DEEP. I can't stand people who think that this movie is just about a bunch of guys fighting and blowing stuff up. This movie is at the very least, a great comment on society's current state. It is adapted from Chuck Palahniuk's novel and preserves most of the themes of that novel. The screenplay, by Jim Uhls, is fantastic and David Fincher's direction is brilliant. Watching this film, the viewer is hit hard with messages about nihilism and modern consumerism. It may take a couple viewings to get the full message.
Anyway, onto the story itself. The plot grabs hold of you and doesn't let go until the last credit has rolled. The film tells the story of your average Joe Schmoe, a 28 year old man, who after losing all of his possessions in a fire, develops a friendship with an interesting character he meets on a plane, Tyler Durden. After some drinks, Tyler asks our unnamed protagonist to hit him...as hard as he can. After some hesitation, he does, and from here an underground fight club where similar men come to get out their anger emerges. I don't want to give anything else away but let's just say that there is a lot more to the movie than that. The plot stands alone as a work of art, but other elements of the film join it to create the best movie of the decade.
First off, you've got your direction by David Fincher. It's beautiful. Look at the damn movie. The opening sequence alone is visually magnificent. The fight scenes are all extremely intense. The airport scenes, the ikea furniture catalog; it's all amazing. There is no doubt about that.
Moving on to the acting, we see Edward Norton playing our protagonist, in the finest performance of his career. His narration is so grim that we really get a sense of what the character is going through. Other than that, his chemistry with Brad Pitt is amazing and stands out extremely well. Pitt gives one of the best performances of his career as Tyler Durden. He really plays the maniacal genius well. Joining Pitt and Norton is Helena Bonham Carter, who plays the dark Marla Singer, the love interest of Tyler and the protagonist. She plays her role perfectly. Watch this movie a couple of times and check out her reactions to certain things and you'll know exactly what I mean.
One last thing I'd like to point out is the score for this movie, done by the Dust Brothers. I'm not a fan of techno music but I must say that they did a really nice job here. The music fits the events of the film perfectly and just adds to the movie's brilliance.
This is a movie that I have seen probably 30 times. Each time I watch it, it gets better. In fact, I would say that this is a movie that NEEDS to be watched at least 2 times to be fully enjoyed. Those who have done so know what I'm talking about. I honestly do believe that this is the best movie of the past decade for no other movie presents us with such a well done mix of plot and theme. Everything about this movie is great. Buy it on DVD. Buy the book. This is one of the greatest stories ever told.