2 of 10
Cinematography by Jeff Cronenweth
Edward Norton
Brad Pitt
Helena Bonham Carter
Meat Loaf
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| Fight Club 2 of 10 |
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| Directed by David Fincher Cinematography by Jeff Cronenweth Edward Norton Brad Pitt Helena Bonham Carter Meat Loaf |
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| Alright, I've finally decided. I hate almost all modern directors, and almost all for the same reason. They are incapable of making beautiful, or even remotely pretty, movies. Maybe I should say that they are either incapable of it, or they really don't want to make them. And I think it's probably connected to the idea that they believe it is impossible say anything seriously unsettling or seriously profound if your films look nice. Instead, they need to look "gritty," or "edgy," or "disturbing." And if they don't, then you're not really a serious film maker. Fight Club is a perfect example of this screwy notion. Fincher is convinced that the ugly story he wants to tell must be told in an ugly way, and he succeeds. Everything is quick cuts, loud rock music, odd camera angles, and gimmicky editing ideas. Toss in an irritating, profane voice over, and the effect is simply dreadful. But enough about the technical aspects. Let's talk about the film itself. It is without redemption. Norton and Pitt are both very good at portraying their respective parts, but that does very little. Because the film is about something so ugly, no one wants to watch. Absolutely none of the characters are appealing, and the conclusion of the movie leaves one with the overwhelming feeling that something very bad has happened, but no one in the film seems to care. Which reminds me. It has a twist ending. I won't say what it is here, but I will say that a large part of the film's commercial success was connected it. And that I found it to be incredibly implausible. It leaves the viewer with the vague feeling that the director set you up, and then pulled the rug out from under your feet without having anything to replace it with. Essentially, this is a very ugly move, visually and, more disturbingly, morally. Films can certainly talk about bad things. But if they don't portray them as bad, it's hard to see why you should subject yourself to the experience. | ||||||