Gone Girl Is Uncomfortably Gloomy

Rating:

When Nick Dunne’s (Ben Affleck) wife goes missing, fingers soon start to point at him. His ambiguous statements only complicate the situation. The day Amy Dunne (Rosamund Pike) disappears happens to be their fifth wedding anniversary, and apparently all hasn’t been going well for this couple.

Can Nick handle the media pressure? Is he involved behind the disappearance of his wife? These questions will likely cross your mind after having been an hour or so into the movie. Those of you who have read Gillian Flynn’s novel, also called Gone Girl, will anticipate how the story unfolds. A screenwriter here, she has by and large stuck to her book. Having not read the novel might be a good thing for you as the plot’s twists and turns will be unexpected.

Ben Affleck is thoroughly convincing as the beleaguered husband who is in the spotlight after the media portrays him as the perpetrator of a crime he denies committing. He adeptly captures the vulnerability of his character, Nick Dunne, as things go from bad to worse all the while jostling to prove his innocence. Rosamund Pike delivers a stellar performance as Amy Dunne. Initially, she manages to evoke sympathy from the audience, but things begin to change as the movie goes on. To pull off a psychologically intense and complex role like this one meant that she had to be on top of her faculty, and she breezes past her part.

The chilling background score effectively builds up an atmosphere of uneasiness. The cinematography is compelling as it gravitates you into the story. The supporting cast is fabulous. Noteworthy among them are Carrie Coon, who plays Nick’s sister Margo Dunne, and Neil Patrick Harris, who plays Desi Collings, Ann’s former lover. David Fincher is at his best marshaling a talented set of actors.

Gone Girl is a dark thriller that will leave you asking if marriage is indeed a blissful union between two people. Having said that, Gone Girl isn’t just about marriage, having many more facets like the intense media scrutiny and the fallibility of the investigators to name a few.

Gone Girl jolts you out of your torpor and makes you question everything you conveniently assumed about a happy marriage. Be prepared to be taken to the edge of sanity and beyond as you revel in the vortex of this psychologically intense drama that will leave you aghast.