Warning : This movie is very graphic and disturbing, and is not for the people who cant stand violence in a movie.
If you are wondering why I’m reviewing the movie now, years after the movies release, its because I managed to get myself a collector’s edition of the DVD and I enjoy it even more with every viewing.
Fight Club has remained one of the most controversial movies of the past decade. It has as many bad reviews as there are good, the reason it is criticized so much is because the violence is portrayed as if it is fashionable and people who fight are cool. All 9 to 6 workers do feel vexed and bored, but only a extreme lot will go to such an extent.
Fight Club boasts of some really fine talents, Director David Fincher (Seven, Game, Panic Room) and his crew, Brad Pitt and Edward Norton.
The Story
Based on Chuck Palahniuk’s first novel, Fight Club tells the unsettling tale of a disillusioned, death-obsessed pencil-pusher (Edward Norton) whose only apparent social stimulus comes from attending cancer support-group meetings. His dreary existence takes a decided turn for the anarchic when he meets an amoral and enigmatic guru named Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt), with whom he develops a secret society of ’’fight clubs, ’’ where young men catch the ultimate adrenaline rush by beating the tar out of one another. In a decidedly un-Merchant Ivory casting, Helena Bonham Carter plays the troubled romantic interest of both men.
The Review
Once in every few years or so, there comes a movie that is unlike anything that you have seen before. They amaze / engulf you or shock you like this movie does. All of Stanley Kubrick’s movies, Alien, Matrix are a few such movies, these movies were way ahead of their time. David Fincher proved his mettle with Se7en, he is an excellent director, one of my favorites.
Norton is deliberately not named in this movie, he narrates the story to the viewers. His tone, accent and body language are ultimate and it easily gets you involved. Norton is an employee of a major automobile company, he suffers from insomnia and frequents the various support groups, where people suffering from disorders meet and console each other. It works for him and soon he has one lined up for every day of the week, some support group even though he doesnt suffer from any disorder. Things get better until Marla Singer (Helena Bonham Carter) pops up and soon his life turns haywire.
His house is blown, he has nowhere to go, nobody to call except for Tyler (Brad Pitt)a soap salesman with an unconventional view of life, whom he met on a flight. Soon they hook up and live together. Soon they both start physically fighting each other as a means of release from the monotony. Soon bystanders get interested and Fight Club is born. Tyler forms the rules of Fight Club, the first of which is ’You do not talk about Fight Club’ and the second rule is ’YOU DO NOT TALK ABOUT FIGHT CLUB’. Soon it catches like wild fire and Fight Clubs spring up all over the country and Tyler becomes a legend. Every night there are fights in various underground places and more and more people embrace the idea of fighting the way out of monotony. Marla becomes Tyler’s girlfriend and she is the only thorn in Norton’s otherwise good life.
Life is better for Norton until one day Tyler just disappears, Norton then travels all over US to find Tyler. I will stop here and allow people to enjoy the movie when they see it. There is however one hell of a twist in the end.
What works for the movie?
David Fincher - his visual style is unlike anybody in movie history. He is a master of visual imagery, the way the camera moves in and out of objects, the title sequence and all the fights are breathtaking.
Brad Pitt and Helena Bonham Carter - easily one of the high points of their career, breakthrough performances.
Edward Norton - he comes up with a stunning and stellar performance (however, his best stays American History X). He is THE most intelligent and most talented actor of this generation and iam a HUGE fan of his. There is no actor like him, he is the ULTIMATE.
Cinematography and Soundtrack - this is a cult movie and part of why it is, is because of the score and the visual style.
what doesnt work?
The fights are raw, bloody and gruesome, not for the meek of the heart.
The movie glorifies violence by portraying it as something cool.
Bottom line
No matter what people say about this movie, it will remain a cult classic and an epic. An epic which nobody(do see warning at the start of review) should miss!
the enigma
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’’Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who’ve ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shi* we don’t need. We’re the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War’s a spiritual war... our Great Depression is our lives. We’ve all been raised on television to believe that one day we’d all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won’t. And we’re slowly learning that fact. And we’re very, very pissed off.’’
Fight Club
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