The Show
As The Curious Case of Bejamin Button continues to do well at the box office, and with its recent Oscar nominations, it seems fitting that David Fincher’s film Zodiac would get a special Blu-ray release like this. Based on the true story of the unsolved Zodiac murders, Zodiac takes a different approach to the serial killer genre. Instead of focusing on the gruesome murders, Fincher instead focuses on the people involved. The film covers two decades, and delves into the lives and minds of the people involved with investigating the case.
When you know the outcome of an event, it makes it even harder for a filmmaker to make an effective film. That’s why Zodiac is so good. This is not a film that glorifies the killings or the killer. This is a film that deals above all else with the rawest of human emotions when it comes to confronting such evil in the world. With little in the way of real “action” Fincher builds suspense with every scene. You find yourself wanting the investigators to solve the murders, even though you know your history and you know that they never caught the man.
The cast here is perfect. Jake Gyllenhaal is a man possessed. He plays his character with such fervent desire to find out what is truly going on that we as the audience get lost in his performance. We can’t help but root for him. Don’t forget Robert Downey Jr.’s performance either. As far as I’m concerned this film thrust Downey Jr. back into the spotlight, starting his comeback.
The Quality
The HD quality here is crystal clear. It really shows off the sets that were created for the Zodiac time period. The earth tones are smooth and crisp, and the close-ups are almost too well done. If there’s one thing about HD is that it shows each and every imperfection in the faces of celebrities that we’re used to thinking of as perfect.
The audio is top-notch also. Even though this isn’t a film with much in the way of big explosions or gun fire, the audio still delivers quite nicely. The pop music of the period is well balanced with the dialogue of the actors.
Article comments
1 - El Bicho
how is this a "special" Blu-ray release? Sounds exactly like the HD DVD, although without the tech specs, it's hard to tell.
"He’s got some extremely interesting insights,"
like what?
2 - handyguy
This is one of the best American movies of recent years, and it deserves a high-definition presentation (it was in fact shot on HD video rather than film). This seems to be the first domestic Blu-Ray version - the single-disc version last November was an import.
But this review basically ignores most of the ambiguity and subtlety that make the film so good. The movie invites us to become obsessed with Zodiac just as the characters do - then it shows us ourselves in a mirror so we can see how pointless and ugly our obsession actually is.