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Review #413 of 365
Movie Review of Zodiac (2007) [R] 158 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $12.00
Where Viewed: United Artists Denver Pavilions Stadium 15, Denver, CO
When 1st Seen: 2 March 2007
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Film's Official Website • Film's Trailer
DVD Release Date: unscheduled
Directed by: David Fincher (Panic Room)
Screenplay by: James Vanderbilt (Darkness Falls) based on the book by Robert Graysmith
Featured Cast (Where You Might Remember Him/Her From):
Jake Gyllenhaal (Brokeback Mountain) • Mark Ruffalo (All the King's Men) • Anthony Edwards (The Forgotten) • Robert Downey Jr. (Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus) • Brian Cox (Running with Scissors) • John Carroll Lynch ("Close to Home") • Chloë Sevigny ("Big Love") • Elias Koteas (The Greatest Game Ever Played) • Dermot Mulroney (The Family Stone) • Donal Logue (Ghost Rider) • Adam Goldberg (Déjà Vu)
Soundtrack: 
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Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word or less review of this film]
The first thing to know about the latest Hollywood exploration into the Zodiac Serial Killer case is that it's 158 minutes long (just 20 minutes shorter than Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings), and there's no intermission. Being as this is not the kind of movie one can easily follow after missing a few minutes for a restroom break necessitated by the hasty agreement to upsize to the super-sized beverage at the candy counter, it is recommended to proceed with the length of the film in mind. Generally speaking, I'm not one to criticize a film's length. Directors should make movies such that their length is equal to the worthiness of all that is told in the story. The second thing to know in advance of seeing the film is that this is not the first and likely will not be the last rendition of this never-definitively-caught serial killers escapades. Moreover, in many ways, though it may not have started out as such, the film really isn't as much about the Zodiac as it is about the obsessions of two men to identify him definitively and the damage their pursuit does to their lives. This might seem a bit ironic and it certainly does put a different dimension on the narrative than a film that had been more about the killer himself, given that the film was adapted from Robert Graysmith's book, and he's the cartoonist turned investigative journalist that wrote arguably the best book on the Zodiac while apparently nearly completely ignoring his family during the high times of his obsession, it makes good sense.
Jake Gyllenhaal as San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist turned crimer solver himself, Robert Graysmith.(Click Still Photo to Purchase)
The film begins with the Zodiac's first advertised killing during December of 1968—he may have committed other murders before as the film explains later, but the this kill is the first one he decides to claim and advertise his guilt to the news media in a series of coded messages delivered to area papers in parts. He demands the media publish his messages and solve the puzzles or he vows to kill again. It is then that we meet the four major players of this rendition of the story: Inspector David Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) and his partner Inspector William Armstrong (Anthony Edwards), San Francisco Chronicle crime bureau editor, Paul Avery (Robert Downey, Jr.), and S.F. Chronicle cartoonist, Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal)—also the author of the book upon which the film is based. The film then focuses on the twenty plus years during which the Zodiac impacts their lives. From the very beginning, Graysmith's love for solving puzzles and mysteries connects him to the case. Paul Avery's desk is close to his in the newsroom, and he takes on a unique role in trying to connect the dots.
"Zodiac…would have needed a finer focus, more or less docudrama, and more resolute conclusion to warrant the praise it will not capture in this incarnation."
As for Avery, who eventually, gets personal attention and a death threat from the Zodiac in one of his letters, he seizes the opportunity to use the case to help him climb the ranks of fame. Being the police detectives assigned to the case in the San Francisco jurisdiction, the case burden falls squarely on the shoulders of Inspectors Toschi and Armstrong—two partners who seem a great pair. Unfortunately, jurisdictional problems among law enforcement agencies created by the random locations of the Zodiac's killings, less advanced evidence collection techniques—C.S.I.: Miami had not been invented yet, a truly cunning serial killer who took credit for crimes he obviously did not commit as easily as ones he may well have committed, and a lack of credible eye-witness testimony, made his apprehension improbable for the times.
Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Edwards play crime detective partners, Inspectors Toschi and Armstrong(Click Still Photo to Purchase)
While the film is interesting for a time, there seems no earthly way people would go to all this trouble if the Zodiac killer was never found. So, what seems like it should be the end of the film, is really the half way mark, with the second half studying the near Captain Ahab-like obsession by Graysmith to piece together that which the police could not and bring the killer to justice something he believes no one else is willing to do. For this, he pays a heavy price in the loss of his job and the near loss of his family members who grow tired of taking a back seat in his life to that of the Zodiac. The source of his obsession with this self-appointed mission is never fully explained. Eventually, it becomes clear, however, that this film would have served its topic and audience better had it been made into an electrifying mini-series for the May Sweeps. Then it could have included more on the fear the Zodiac inflicted on San Francisco and its collar communities, built the suspense of each claimed victim's murder and the subsequent letters that followed, and handled the timeline more effectively. As it was, the suspense was minimized, only Robert Downey, Jr. seemed to age during the 20 years plus that the film takes place—oh, I guess Jake Gyllenhaal does grow some facial hair by the end, and drawn out segments like those featuring Melvin Belli (Brian Cox) the famous media darling lawyer man the Zodiac names via letter as the one from whom he'd like to receive counseling and advice could have been more carefully assembled into the plot. As it stands, the film tries to accomplish too much and ends up mixing messages, allowing false conclusions, and promoting avenues that probably weren't as true as they seem. It's nearly impossible, for example, to leave the film without a derived certainty that Arthur Leigh Allen (John Carroll Lynch) was the Zodiac. The final scene all but corroborates this. Yet, this was never proven and some DNA evidence may have proved him innocent had he not died prior to being formally charged with the crimes.
Robert Downey, Jr. as San Francisco Chronicle reporter Paul Avery(Click Still Photo to Purchase)
Now, this is not to say that film is without merit. Certainly, Jake Gyllenhaal does a very good job, at least until he's supposed to be some 20 years older later in the film, in playing Graysmith. Of course, the degree to which he comes across as the hero and the savior in the film may have more to do with his authorship than reality. Mark Ruffalo, as well, does a good job with his Inspector Toschi character. The role doesn't really require him to tap the depths of his emotions as much as it could have, and in the end he may come across as a bit stale and worn down—which his character surely is by then too. John Carroll Lynch has great fun playing the constant source of Graysmith's and Toschi's investigation. If he was the Zodiac, they plainly had him in custody several times, but always let him go because they never had more than circumstantial evidence. Anthony Edwards does a decent job with what appears to be a pretty milquetoast character in real life. Robert Downey, Jr. demonstrates he can aptly portray a guy capable of downing half a dozen, blue aqua velvas (Graysmith's favorite alcoholic beverage) in an afternoon, drowning himself in his sorrows of lost opportunities, and ignoring the calling that might have set himself free of his self-absorbed demons—hmm. Director David Fincher really should have noticed this film was growing in girth but not in substance at some point. He might have realized that two tale of two men's unrequited obsessions might be a more disappointing ending than most people will choose to endure for a large price and nearly three hours of their lives. Even if this were a brand new story being revealed to national audiences for the first time, it would have needed a finer focus, more or less docudrama, and more resolute conclusion to warrant the praise it will not capture in this incarnation.
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Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word review of this film]
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Other Projects Featuring Zodiac (2007)
Cast Members
Jake Gyllenhaal
• Mark Ruffalo • Anthony EdwardsRobert Downey Jr.
• Brian Cox • John Carroll LynchChloë Sevigny
• Elias Koteas • Dermot MulroneyDonal Logue
• Adam GoldbergDirector
David Fincher
Writer
James Vanderbilt
| Book | DVD | VHS |
| Book | Related Book | Related Book |
Zodiac (2007) Review-lite [150-word cap]
Know two things first about the latest Hollywood exploration into the Zodiac Serial Killer case: it's 158 minutes long and it really isn't as much about the Zodiac as it is about the obsessions of two men compelled to identify him definitively and the damage their pursuit does to their lives. Beginning with the Zodiac's first advertised killing during December of 1968 followed by his coded messages to the local S.F. newspapers, the film follows the lives of police inspector Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) and S. F. Chronicle cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal) as they become obsessed with finding the killer's definitive identity. Even if this were a brand new story being revealed to national audiences for the first time, it would have needed a finer focus, more or less docudrama, and more resolute conclusion to warrant the praise it will not capture in this incarnation.
1 comment:
Downey is an incredible actor, he really made this movie I think. I look forward to reading your review for Tropic Thunder.
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