Above average serial killer movie

Rating: 8/10 (6 May 2008)

This is the story of the infamous Zodiac serial killer who terrorized California in the late 60's and early 70's. Obviously, since the story is based on real occurrences you may already know how it turns out. Then again, "Dirty Harry" was also based on these same events (albeit loosely).
Unlike "Dirty Harry", though, this is not a one-dimensional cops and robbers (or rather cops and serial killers) flick where the good guys match wits with a dangerous criminal on their way to a decisive outcome. This film is more about criminal elusiveness. Mark Ruffalo's character Dave Toschi is no Harry Callahan clone. He may not like being constrained by due process but we see that in the real world the bad guys aren't always so easily identified.
This film is mostly about pursuit rather than confrontation. It drags a little at times in the latter stages of the 158 minute running time but that's not a major detraction. I do think that the script could have used a little tightening, though.
The acting is uniformly fine all around, with Gyllenhaal & Ruffalo giving perhaps the best performances. David Fincher's direction is ideally suited to the subject matter and creates an eerie sense of foreboding throughout. Another thing worth noting is the deft use of period-specific music, most notably Donovan's "Hurdy Gurdy Man".
Overall, the film isn't perfect but it's a definitely better than the run of the mill movies of this type.