The All-Consuming Zodiac Killer

Rating: 8/10 (27 July 2007)

A couple of years ago, I read an article about how some people are still obsessed with the Zodiac serial killer case. Since the murderer was never apprehended, this case has fascinated a number of people for almost 40 years. There are websites and all kinds of people, apparently, who can't let go of this famous case.
Lo and behold - here's a movie about that obsession. I, probably like a number of viewers, thought this was just another film about the murderer, and it looked that way for the first hour of the 157-minute movie. However, it turns out be just as much a story about one guy who has this obsession about finding the killer. That man is "Robert Graysmith," a cartoonist for the San Francisco Chronicle. He is played by Jake Gyllenhaal. The movie is based on Graysmith's books on the Zodiac killer, so it's no surprise the story winds up revolving around him.
For moviegoers looking for a hard-nosed, brutal serial-killer story, this must have been a disappointing film because it turns out to be a character study of "Graysmith" plus an in- depth behind-the-scenes look at police procedure which, as any cop could tell you, can be tedious work. However, there is still is enough violence and suspense, particularly early on, to satisfy some and there is a lot of information on the crimes itself, and a lot of suspects to entertain the "whodunit" mystery-solving viewer.
I admit the story began to drag a bit after two hours but overall, I thought it was an intelligent, interesting profile of all concerned: most-likely killer, detectives, newsmen, witnesses, other suspects, Graysmith's wife - everyone who could possibly been involved with this long-standing unanswered crime case. In a way, this story reminded me of the CSI shows on TV where every five minutes we get a new can't-miss suspect who turns out to be a false lead. However, in this story, no one was ever tried and convicted. But, the movie does come to a conclusion on who the guilty party was, and makes a convincing case for it.
Thus, at least according to the film, Mr. Graysmith's work was not in vain. (The real-life suspect died of a heart attack, so we may never know for sure.)
The downside for Mr. Graysmith, and people we may not even know about, was that his life and others have been radically altered for the worse this obsession to find the Zodiac killer. It cost Mr. Graysmith his marriage.
Overall, this is a bit long but it features excellent acting by everyone and offers diverse characters. I would like to have seen more with Arthur Allen. John Carroll Lynch is not a big- name actor but he's good and, for obvious reasons, a fascinating person in this story. Director David Fincher doesn't offer up the edge-of-your-seat thrillers as he did in "Se7en" and "Panic Room," but this is still worth a look and recommended.