It was late 2012, I still remember seeing a book in the hands of a lady on the tram. That was the first time and then I saw it again with another lady. It made me curious but I am not that much into books. The author Gillian Flynn didn't strike a chord either. But I was quite fascinated that there were so many people who were reading the same story. I bought the book in 2013. Didn't even unwrap it. I completely forgot about it.
A few weeks back, I saw the trailer of a movie titled Gone Girl. That single line - "I did not kill my wife" struck me so hard that I got a sudden urge to pick up the book and know what happened. I knew that I was definitely going to see this movie but I was curious and fascinated by just the trailer that I wanted to know every f**king detail. What the hell was this all about? I finally read the book and I was thrilled beyond expectations. Blown-away you could say too.
If courtship is a movie, marriage is a job that can become a grinding routine, an Ever After without the Happily - courtesy Time Magazine
David Fincher's Gone Girl is simply a masterpiece. Its electrifying, powerful and sends you laughing certainly at the right moments. The movie shows what a usual America is - doubting the husband to have killed his wife, some pretty dumb neighbours who could believe what you'd say, sympathising with the husband when he comes out as a cheater. Its all in there within a capsule of 150 minutes.
From the beginning of the movie, when we hear Nick's monologue about his desire to unspool his wife's brains from her pretty head, we realise that this movie is going to be kick-ass. This missing wife drama is full of mystery and its really nasty. I must give credit to the author Flynn who has also been instrumental in the screenplay. When you read the book, it doesn't hit you that hard. The diary entries, the fights and the blood stains - when you see all that on the screen, it is quite shocking.
Gone Girl's biggest plus point is the casting. Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike as Nick and Amy are so perfect for each other. Pike's mysterious smiles and mannerisms are so Amy on every frame - the ice-blooded psychopath who shouldn't seem like that until you know that she is that! And Affleck being the glib and sort of unhappy husband is right on the dot.
The movie is structurally quite sound and follows the book Scenes shift from Nick to Amy as they do in the book. I do agree that the devil is in the detail but they had to cut it down to keep the audience glued to the seat. Which worked. The montage of how Amy does stuff has been shot incredibly well. The one last scene with Neil Patrick Harris (he wasn't a great choice for the part), is somewhat traumatizing and that's why this movie is rated Extreme Violence.
