Zodiac
David Finchers latest movie is a Docu-drama about the lives of 3 men, from 1968 to the early 90's, who were obsessed with identifying the "Zodiac" killer or living in fear (Robert Downey Jnr). It most follows Jake Gyllenthal's character who was a cartoonist at the SF Chronicle and eventually cracked the last cypher and wrote 2 books speculating on who the killer was.
The "Zodiac" was never caught and claimed to have killed 37 people from 1968 - 1974 (Although the police think it was only 5 fatalities) he rose to fame due to his letters to the local paper and the cypher he included in the letters. He was also the inspriation behind the "Dirty Harry" film which is featured in the movie at one point.
It's a slow paced movie that is more or less a forensic examination of the evidence and suspects in the Zodiac case as seen from the perspective of the Jake Gyllenthaal character. However I was griped from start to finish.
There are some spectacular scenes in the movie especially the basement scene with one of the suspects. Some nice visual shots, like the overhead shot of the goldengate bridge in fog, overhead shot following a taxi through the streets or the time lapse construction of the Transamerica Pyramid when it jumps forward in time. It also does an excellent job with the 70's atmosphere.
Some great performances from everyone in the movie.
Overall a superb film.
and remember ...if you live in N California......He as never caught
