Better than expected, no less violent, but more intelligent. Still, in the end, unbelievable.

Rating: 7/10 (28 July 2000)

OK, I'm an old codger compared to most of those who visit this site, but I'm a real movie fanatic. And Fight Club is not one of the 30-odd greatest movies of all time, nor is Edward Norton the greatest actor of all time. But this is an interesting film, mostly because one doesn't even know its genre until it's almost over. Sci-fi horror, that's about as close as I can come, unless madness is a genre. The whole idea of this narrator with his meaningless life bringing us into his insane world without letting us know until the end that he's insane, not just bored and sullen, and it's insane (and not just an attempt to gain meaning through violence) is really pretty clever. But the climax has no credibility; it's just a great visual effect. (I saw this on DVD, by the way, and thought all the director's and special effects guys' comments were interesting, but really made it clear they were done for their own sake and with awards and kudos in mind). This really is movie-making for the MTV generation, and if anyone of that generation really feels upset that he was deprived of recession, war and pestilence, given an expensive education and subsequently accepted a high-paying white collar job and its attendant condo lifestyle, I say, hey, it's not illegal to join the Peace Corps or the Army and actually be of use to someone other than yourself.