Grade: A+

Rating: 9/10 (7 November 2014)

Gone Girl is the latest addition to David Fincher's long filmography as a director of suspense and mystery. This particular film focuses far more on relationship dynamics than any other of his films of the same genre, and does a much better job with it than his movie The Curious Case of Benjamin Button did. Fincher has always been a master of camera and editing, but with Gone Girl, he proves he has truly mastered direction of the actors, and is in total command of everything on the screen.
From the get-go, Gone Girl poses its driving questions: what happened to Amy Dunne, and was her husband Nick Dunne involved? Ben Affleck is very convincing as both an everyday suburban man and as the possible kidnapper of his wife. The film toys with the audience's emotions and sense of direction with its unreliable narrators: both Nick and Amy. We get the sense he's a good guy, but there's enough reason to doubt. Supporting him is his sister Margo, played by Carrie Coon in a spectacularly nuanced and overshadowed performance. She is helping Nick every step of the way; that is until she develops doubts of her own. Is Nick Dunne responsible for what happened to Amy?
Our answer is handed to us on a silver platter in the middle of the film, a move that at first I thought was poor writing on Gillian Flynn's part. As the story continued though, I realized that this was necessary, because the story is not over, and the movie poses even more questions on the audience and soon you have no idea where the film will take you. It's a fun and terrifying ride all the way through.
Gone Girl is supported by great performances by Rosamund Pike, who deserves an Oscar nomination for displaying an amazing range of character; Neil Patrick Harris, in possibly the most shadowy performance of his career; Kim Dickens as the head detective of the investigation; and Tyler Perry, who provides great comic relief in an otherwise dark and twisted film.
As always, David Fincher's film features great cinematography (Fincher keeps his movie cinematic and distant by staying on a tripod and only moving in close when necessary), fantastic lighting to manipulate how we feel about the characters in certain scenes, and efficient editing (although in moments it doesn't linger where it should, some scenes end too abruptly).
The ending might leave some frustrated, as it leaves with us more questions, but by the end, it doesn't matter: David Fincher has shown us in terrifying glory what people are capable of doing to each other, and doesn't try to make us feel comfortable or safe for a second. I left the theater feeling disturbed. And I wouldn't have had it any other way.
Grade: A+