Sprawling Masterwork

Rating: 9/10 (27 June 2017)

The first time I watched Zodiac I didn't really watch it. I wasn't in the mood for something that "involved", and I probably made it a third of the way through-it and wound-up doing something else. Many years later I revisited the film.
"Zodiac" is an amazing film. I don't know of many(if any) films that span such a large time-frame, and do it so effectively as it's done here. THe film just feels so real. THe violence is shocking AND shockingly well-done. It comes in short, quick, realistic doses.
THere are also some genuinely scary scenes, and despite the films length, it's paced evenly and stays engrossing throughout. It's like "All the President's Men(8/10)" met the original "Maniac(6/10)", only it's significantly better than both.
One of my favorite things about the film is the effective misleads, and Gylenhaal's relentless but smart, shy lead.
I'm seriously considering rating this as the 4rth 10/10 from '07(There WIll Be Blood, King of Kong, U23D), and the 49th out of 4600+ ratings. It's at least worthy of a 9/10 and I find it a little mind-boggling that it's under 8 on this site. I would have expected about 8.2-8.4 here, but hey, like I said, the film will beat you up ala Sorcerer('77) or TWBB('07). It's not for everyone - except for film buffs and the older generation that doesn't have to have all that CGI and non-stop action to be entertained. Excellent film.