The hauntingly provocative story that is Gone Girl has finally been brought to life. David Fincher (Fight Club, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) lives up to his outstanding directorial reputation while under the guidance of Gillian Flynn, who wrote the bestseller as well as the screenplay for the film.
Gone Girl follows the story of Nick and Amy Dunne (Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike) as their relationship spirals into oblivion leaving the fate of their marriage and lives at stake. On the morning of their fifth wedding anniversary, Nick returns home to find an obscure crime scene and his wife, Amy, missing. Nick is seen as the only suspect and must find his wife before he is arrested and blamed for her disappearance. As viewers follow the story of Nick and Amy’s doomed marriage and maniacal relationship, each plot twist is more jarring than the next.
While the characterization of Nick Dunne did not require stuntmen or car chases as per Affleck’s usual action roles, his performance in Gone Girl is remarkable. Affleck perfectly channels Nick Dunne as a tortured husband trapped under the eye of the public and a failing marriage. The aloofness and moral ambiguity of Nick Dunne’s character is divergent from the alpha-male good guy Affleck usually plays, but the contrast makes it one of his best performances yet.
Almost outshining Affleck is Rosamund Pike as the unforgettable Amy Dunne. Although Pike is not as prominent in the film world as Affleck, her performance as Amy is shocking, intense and disturbingly believable. Viewers find themselves falling for Amy and hoping for her downfall all at the same time.
Affleck and Pike weren’t the only great performers in this film. Stepping aside from the role of How I Met Your Mother’s outgoing ladykiller Barney Stinson, Neil Patrick Harris is sweet yet eerily persistent as Amy’s high school sweetheart and stalker, Desi Collings. While Tyler Perry does not don his outrageous Madea costume in his part as Nick’s lawyer, Tanner Bolt, he still offers tasteful comedic relief throughout the movie. Less well known than her fellow costars, Missi Pyle (Big Fish, The Artist) is by far the most believable role in the film as trash-TV host Ellen Abbott. Pyle channels the southern drawl and badgering personality of her HLN and Court TV inspirations so well, viewers may wonder if they’re seeing Nancy Grace herself onscreen.
Along with hiring a stellar cast, Fincher’s visible aspect to the Gone Girl story perfectly captures the tone of the book. Dark lighting and color scheme are utilized on screen to encompass the depression of Nick and Amy through the hard times of their marriage and accentuate the hopelessness and desperation their actions have led to.
While a lot of blockbuster movies seem to have sex scenes randomly thrown in with no benefit to the plot, Gone Girl’s electrifying love scenes engross viewers without grossing them out. Scenes between Nick and Amy Dunne are meant to show the passion they once had for each other and deeply contrast with the coldness that their relationship takes on. Although the scenes can be intense (definitely don’t see this one with your parents) they’re tasteful and the passion between characters matches the level of drama in the film.
The most shocking and perhaps infuriating aspect of the Gone Girl text was it’s unforgettable ending. Fichner and Flynn have made sure that viewers, whether they have read the book or not, have that same jaw dropping feeling when the credits roll as readers did at the turn of the last page of the novel. Love or hate the ending, Gone Girl will undoubtedly resonate with every viewer in the theater.
Selene San Felice can be reached at Selene.sanfelice@theminaretonline.com.