Gone Girl

Directed by:

David Fincher

Starring:

 Ben Affleck

Rosamund Pike

Tyler Perry

Neil Patrick Harris

Carrie Coon

When you sit down to a movie starring Ben Affleck and with the word "girl" in the title, it is safe to say that you should not expect too much from the experience. You would be forgiven if you expected to sit through almost two hours of Affleck smouldering with that big square jaw and those bigger, squarer shoulders and generally being all handsome and wonderful. You would also be forgiven for making the assumption that you had just wasted almost €20 on tickets and extortionately priced cardboard imitation food - and that's assuming you go Dutch. You would be forgiven but you would also be very wrong.

Sure, the price is still high, the food is disgusting and the jaw is still ridiculously square but this is a different Affleck flick. This is definitely more The Town than Gigli and more Argo than Jersey Girl. Remember, this is the Affleck that is trying to win the hearts and minds of Batman fans. It is no coincidence that he has starred in darker roles as of late and will continue to until he stars as The Dark Knight.

Here, he plays Nick Dunne, a husband who comes home from work to find his wife Amy, played by Rosamund Pike, is missing and their house in a state of disarray. A marriage that outwardly appeared to be as close to perfect as one could idealistically suggest suddenly appears to be creakier than Betty White's hip.

Then unfolds a topsy-turvy whodunnit which transforms into a breath-taking and utterly captivating wasanythingevendone. Not since the early days of Homeland have we questioned whether or not the main star was a good guy or a bad guy in such detail. For every reason to like him there is an equal reason to doubt him.

Then there is the ultimate twist of all - is Affleck even the star? Amy is present throughout by means of flashbacks to her narrated journal writing, bringing a verisimilitude to the part that Nick himself must play; we are allowed to hear the innermost thoughts of Amy set to the backdrop of Nick needing to appear remorseful and sad at his doting wife's tragic disappearance. In fact, so good is Pike in her role that I felt compelled to glance through Jack Reacher, just to judge her eyes in a new light which stayed with me so long after seeing Gone Girl. I will never look at her the same again!

Make no assumptions with this movie, except the assumption that this movie is worth your time and spondulas. This film never lets you rest on your laurels because just when you think you have anyone or anything figured out, you are thrown yet another curve-ball. Christopher Nolan take note; you don't need three or so hours for a movie to perfectly depict drama.

At one point, Nick is in a police station in a poignant moment and you are left to wonder what the message is in the movie - how did two young affable, loving people get to this point in their lives? It is then that your eyes are drawn to the notice board in the station. Amidst the ocean grey walls and military grey features is a poster that boldly states "God Bless America". This is the point of the movie. These two people and their relationship have become perverted products of a bastardised society. Gone Girl is a searing indictment of modern America and the morals and standards it sets its citizens. It is a message that is very well said.

Gone Girl brings into question our very ideas of love, happiness, marriage and the inter-dependency of the traditional monogamous relationship. A slow-burner to start with, each twist is like a gear change and with each one, the movie accelerates at a rate that keeps you moving forward but in a very smooth manner.

For this movie, leaving the story exactly where they did is as fascinating as every intricate twist and it will be commendable to leave the story as it is. Slight curiosity aside, you won't know what happens next and you won't want to know!

Neil Patrick Harris was a welcome secondary character in the movie, playing the part of the creepy ex-boyfriend Desi Collings to a tee, a role far-removed form his goofy shenanigans in How I Met Your Mother. Unlike Topher Grace playing the bad guy in the awful Spiderman 3, Harris' change of persona is very welcome and proves that he should have a decent career on the big screen away from that piffling teen drama.

For Pike, this should prove to be a major turning point in her career - she is almost TOO good as Amy.

For Affleck, the future is dark and very, very bright.

Rating: ★★★★

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esGn-xKFZdU