Writer/Director: David Fincher
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Tilda Swinton, Charles Parnell
‘Fantastic Thriller’
Few filmmakers create engrossing thrillers about killers like David Fincher. Since entering the social network business in the 1990’s, Fincher has made movies about obsession affecting individuals with loneliness. His movies tell stories of detectives obsessed with box mysteries. He has a knack for capturing obsessed detectives striving to crack cases of the Zodiac. Shining a bright light, his movies capture men in clubs that fight. Taking a personal point-of-view, I identify with Fincher’s movies about girls with a dragon tattoo. Being someone with OCD, I relate towards Fincher’s movies. From an early age, I began to engage in obsessive behavior causing collateral damage. In high-school, I became one of the sad prisoners of obsessive behavior. Taking a difficult math class, I started obsessive behaviors of praying. On a dark day, my teachers noticed me repeating phrases in the hallway. My teachers were stunned in silence. Fearing for my safety, they advised me to drop the class immediately. With remorse, I dropped the course. However, it affected my life forever. After my breakdown, I couldn’t turn life around. I was afraid I would never pass 12th Grade. No more at the top of my game, I lost fame. Like gone girls which disappear, obsession led graduation to vanish out of thin air. Facing the curious case of depression, I lost motivation. As life hit a low, David Fincher’s films healed my sorrow. Cinema allowed me to overcome trauma. Fincher’s movies about panic rooms were therapeutic tools I used to battle disorders that were tragic.
Now, Fincher returns and his strengths as a filmmaker capturing obsessive killers are evident in his film “The Killer”. Ambitious, gripping and thought-provoking, it demonstrates obsessive killers’ back-breaking barriers. Fincher paints extraordinary obsession portrayals causing killers’ mental health to deteriorate. Boasting phenomenal production-design, soul-stirring storytelling and phenomenal performances, it’s an extraordinary thriller. Although “The Killer” is unforgettable, it isn’t flawless. It lacks compelling character development, building abrupt endings. Nevertheless, it offers enjoyable entertainment for David Fincher fans.
Commemorating graphic novels, “The Killer” follows career-oriented killers whose obsession with professions are catastrophic. Michael Fassbender embodies the killer, a hitman believing he can murder following a plan. The killer follows regimented routines consisting of hearing music, practicing yoga and repeating phrases before murder. However, the killer’s lifestyle is disrupted following botching murders. Experiencing pressure, the killer discovers obsessive behaviors’ disaster.
David Fincher is fascinated with killers. Whether it’s Zodiac killers, corporations’ founders or fight club members, his movies capture obsessive characters. With “The Killer”, Fincher revisits familiar subject matter. It’s Fincher’s attempt dramatizing novels about killers, but he succeeds. Using captivating cinematography, Fincher captures a killer’s journey. Visually, it’s a feast for the eyes as breathtaking as murders killers organize. Fincher excels using low-key lighting in movies, and “The Killer” is no exception. Evoking “The Social Network”, Fincher captures obsessions’ influences by low-key lighting. Like low-key lighting emphasizing Mark’s pursuing social networking, dim lighting captures the killer’s demented routine. Lighting elevates the scene depicting the killer’s yoga routine. It reignited memories of praying during high-school studies. Low-key lighting is tricky. As “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” suggested, lighting elevates mysteries. Quentin Tarantino’s “Pulp Fiction” suggested lighting elevates crime dramas. Nevertheless, it works. Alongside cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt, Fincher captures killers. Fincher demonstrates obsessions, crafting theatrical viewing.
If killers don’t attract you towards theaters, however, there’s reasons to see “The Killer”. Fincher excels at using sounds in his movies, and “The Killer” follows this tradition. Fincher uses sound-design demonstrating obsessive individuals’ perspectives facing decline. Assisted by sound-designer Ren Klyce, Fincher stages action showing obsession. For instance, sounds elevate the murder scene. During this unforgettable scene, the killer experiences obsessive behavior of repeating phrases after botching murder. One appreciates sound-design recalling “Se7en”. Like detective Mills asking, “what’s in the box?”, the killer repeats phrases under pressure. It reminded me of my obsessive behavior repeating phrases under pressure observed by schoolteachers. Diegetic sound is complicated. As “Mank” suggested, sounds elevate period pieces. Denis Villeneuve’s “Prisoners” proved diegetic sounds elevate abduction thrillers. However, it succeeds. Furthermore, music is magnificent. Evoking “Zodiac”, it captures killers’ panic attack. Through production-design, Fincher captures killers’ decline.
Another extraordinary “The Killer” component is storytelling. Fincher’s screenwriting strength is capabilities demonstrating repercussions experienced by obsessive killers through voice-over narration. Most movies infrequently address debilitating mental health problems impacting killers’ capabilities accomplishing objectives with success. As case in exemplar: Jonathan Demme’s “The Silence of the Lambs” demonstrated serial killers as invincible individuals silently getting away with murders without disorders. Fortunately, however, “The Killer” avoids pitfalls. Commemorating “Fight Club”, Fincher meticulously captures killers’ deteriorations by voice-over narration. Like the narrator’s descriptions manufacturing fight club organizations, the killer describes obsessions. Narration elevates the scene where the killer discovers back-breaking repercussions of obsessions causing his girlfriend’s murder. It reminded me of obsessive behaviors causing back-breaking remorse impacting capabilities to pass a mathematics course. Through narration, Fincher constructs multidimensional depictions of individuals with obsessions. Voice-over narration is complicated. As “Gone Girl” demonstrated, narration enhances adaptations. “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” demonstrated narration enhances fantasy. Nevertheless, it succeeds. Through phenomenal storytelling, Fincher demonstrates disorders.
One appreciates astonishing performances.
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Michael Fassbender delivers a career-defining performance as the killer. It’s challenging capturing personalities of killers with obsessive tendencies, but Fassbender succeeds. Evoking Tom Cruise in Michael Mann’s “Collateral”, Fassbender embodies an assassin whose tendencies experiencing obsessive behaviors cause collateral damage. It’s a character allowing Fassbender to capitalize on his strengths communicating emotions through expressions rather than words. With mesmerizing expressions, he captures an obsessive killer’s angst, dedication and mischief. It’s a phenomenal performance.
The support cast is stellar, sharing killer chemistry. Tilda Swinton’s sensational, bringing charisma to an institutionalization feminist assassin haunted by frightening memories of childhood trauma. Charles Parnell is captivating, capturing suffering of a banker that becomes target of the killer’s murder. Lastly, Kerry O’Malley merits acknowledgements. She’s heartbreaking.
Despite magnificent acting, however, “The Killer” commits messy murders falling short of masterpieces made by David Fincher. Fincher’s decisions staging meticulous murders is commendable but affects character development. For instance, we’re barely given reasons to care about the killer. Personally, I couldn’t feel sympathy for a cold-blooded killer without humanity. Introducing character backstory may have elevated the movie. Fincher’s greatest movies feature character development, and in this regard “The Killer” falters as entertainment. As “Panic Room” suggested, Fincher’s films depend on empathetic characters trapped in panic rooms. Moreover, the film lacks compelling endings. It’s an abrupt conclusion. Whereas this ending elevated “The Game”, it clashes with the film’s realism. Worst, it perpetuates the message killers murder without damage. Fincher excels crafting satisfying endings, which makes the movie disappointing. Therefore, “The Killer” falters.
Nevertheless, David Fincher’s fans will certainly recognize “The Killer” and so will audiences that give acknowledgements to obsessive behaviors. A captivating thriller, it captures obsessive behavior impacting lives of Zodiac killers. An extraordinary depiction of obsession affecting the profession of a cold-hearted hitman seeking acknowledgements to stick to a plan, it can stir individuals with OCD to recover after disorders disposed institutionalization dreams in a trash can.
A fantastic spotlight on men forming fight clubs to overcome mental health plight, it’s a fabulous reminder of a frightening disease hidden in plain sight affecting abilities of soap salesmen to sleep soundly at night.
Like boxes containing contents which are terrifying, it’s a depressing reminder of the negative impact obsessions have on the well-being of detectives investigating killers whose murders are shocking.
If movies can shine bright light in darkness raising mental health awareness, hopefully it will inspire individuals to recover years after sacrificing friendships for obsessions with social network business.
As meticulous as murders the killer has committed, it has motivated me to recover years after obsessions with sticking to the plan affected grades in schools I attended by honoring one of the world’s best directors that deserves to be celebrated.
4/5 stars
The Film Buff 