There's a killer on the road !!!!

Rating: 10/10 (26 November 2014)

Zodiac is based on the novel written by Robert Graysmith about the notorious "Zodiac" killer who went on a killing spree in and around the San Francisco Bay Area during the late 1960s and the early 1970s. Unlike Seven or Fight Club, Fincher adopted a very non-showy approach to tell the story in the overall sense, but his characteristic style is still visible in the look of many scenes throughout the movie.
The script and the screenplay is like a labyrinth or a maze of evidence, documents, leads, red herrings and dead ends. Fincher aggressively puts us in the middle of the investigation and refuses to provide any relief from this never ending saga of relentless evidence analysis and exploration. Due to this, when the film ends you feel like you have been a part of the proceedings too. The film doesn't have any chases or too much gory violence. The murder scenes take place very early within the first 30 minutes,throughout the remaining portion, emphasis is placed on the nitty-gritty aspects of the evidence exploration.
We follow Robert Graysmith(Gyllenhaal), Dave Toschi(Ruffalo) and Paul Avery(Downey Jr.) on the continuous pursuit of the Zodiac killer. Along with the real aspects of the investigation, the theme of the film is to show how the lives of investigators can get hugely affected by the harrowing aspect of being a part of such a long winded case which never seems to reach a satisfactory conclusion. It is more about the journey than the destination. Chasing a serial killer can lead to an obsession which is not much different than the obsession which engulfed that very serial killer in the first place and it can lead to complete deterioration of personal and professional lives.
For a movie which is 2 hours 45 minutes long, it feels extremely enjoyable and never boring. Fincher avoids clichés that have perennially plagued the crime mystery genre. He expects the viewer to keep up with the plot. He never compromises by inserting any unnecessary action scenes. The cinematography like all Fincher films is great. The production design expertly recreates a look of the film very appropriate for the era to which the story belongs. The colour yellow plays a huge role in the visual context to convey the themes in the plot. Above all this film masterfully shows how even in a cop investigation thriller like this, closure can be achieved through means other than the hero shooting the villain in the end.
Zodiac is a long film and requires some effort from the viewer while watching, but with the required amount of focus, this is a rewarding experience. The film is supremely re-watchable and the plot always feels addictive no matter how many times you have watched it before.