Zodiac – DVD Review

Film, Reviews

Available at Amazon.com

Director

David Fincher

Cast

Jake Gyllenhaal Robert Graysmith
Mark Ruffalo Inspector David Toschi
Robert Downey Jr. Paul Avery
Anthony Edwards Inspector William Armstrong
Brian Cox Melvin Belli
John Carroll Lynch Arthur Leigh Allen
Dermot Mulroney Captain Marty Lee
Chloë Sevigny Melanie

DVD Release Date: July 24, 2007
Rating: R
Running Time: 157 Minutes

The Movie

In the late sixties, the state of California was haunted by a series of murders that should have been the easiest in the world to solve. Victims were left for dead at times, yet they happened to survive. The murderer would call each time he committed another one, admit his guilt, and tell police exactly what happened. Handwritten letters and clues to his identity were sent to not only them, but also the local newspapers. Yet a case that opened up in December of 1968 was closed in 2004 without ever being solved.

Robert Graysmith is a cartoonist for the San Francisco Chronicle and knows that he isn’t a big shot reporter like most others in his office, but he still works hard. One day though he is involved in an editorial meeting about a couple murders that recently happened and a letter from the alleged killer coming straight to the paper. Upon some closer research by top reporter Paul Avery, the facts in the letter prove to be true. With the letter was a cipher that gave the killer’s identity.

Some time later, another murder happened and with it came another letter and cipher. The killer now called himself the Zodiac and wanted his ciphers printed on the front pages of numerous newspapers so everyone could read about his work. If his demands weren’t met; he would kill again. Paul continued working hard on the case while Robert also did the same. Only a cartoonist though, Robert only got bits of information here and there to do what he could on his own.

The officers assigned to the case from the San Francisco Police Department were Dave Toschi and William Armstrong. Together they worked, although often reluctantly, with officers from both Vallejo and other areas where the murders took place. They pooled together their information and tried solving the case with as little publicity as possible, but their attempts at that proved to be futile.

As time went on, the Zodiac would kill and send another letter. Then he’d sit back for a while as he watched the newspapers and police forces trying to figure out who he was. Sometimes years would pass in between his letters. Sometimes it would be mere weeks. Meanwhile, Robert was still collecting all the information about him that he could and looking to figure out exactly who the killer was. Robert even put his time, hard work, and his family life into investigating the case so he could write a book about the killer and possibly bring him to justice. But numerous false leads, a few good ones, and even one big time possible suspect could never catch the Zodiac.

By major leaps and bounds, Zodiac is the best film to come out so far this year and could possibly beat out anything else planned for the remainder of 2007. There is just not a fault to be found anywhere from moment one all the way through to the end of the two and a half hours. The story literally writes itself and has just always been an interesting case. My knowledge of the Zodiac is rather vast since it always interested me, and the case just always intrigued me but never has it appeared to me in such an enjoyable way.

Gyllenhaal and Downey Jr. are fantastic in their roles as Robert Graysmith and Paul Avery. From the start it is obvious that Graysmith is the main focus of the film next to the actual killer himself since it was Robert that ended up writing a book about it. But the person who steals the film more then anyone is Mark Ruffalo as Inspector Toschi. His hard-nosed style for detail and keeping information confidential seeps through as Ruffalo’s character shows his affection for this case and capturing the Zodiac. Then in the blink of an eye he shows a softer and quite humorous side by his constant need for animal crackers.

It isn’t one of the more popularly known cases nor is it one that had the highest body count, but it most certainly is one of the most eye-catching. The way the Zodiac had spread out his murders and letters is portrayed perfectly by director David Fincher. The uninformed may look at it and wonder why there is so much jumping around, but that is exactly as it was. Never is too much time spent on one particular incident before moving onto the next and tying them together. Zodiac is perfect from start to finish in every aspect from story to acting to directing to set design. Fincher took an open-ended story and made it into a complete and flawless film.

The Video

The film is shown in 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen and really makes the film even better then it already is. Fincher’s attention to detail in making the time period seem as realistic as possible shows through in the bright, vibrant colors of the sixties while keeping the mood dark and murky. The entire film has a bit of a hue over it, but I believe that is intentional as to make it seem more accurate for the time period. Even the opening screens showing the Paramount and Warner Bros. logos are the older versions from the sixties making the film seem even more authentic.

The Audio

The film is heard in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and really sounds good. The atmosphere is mostly quiet for the duration of the film so don’t expect any car chases, loud explosions, or much more then a handful of gunshots. But the attention to detail in the film is shown here in the sound and how things creep around you in the room during the scenes outside while voices are heard from everywhere in a crowded news room.

Special Features

TrailersZodiac: Director’s Cut, Next, and Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer

The Inside Pulse

It is really a shame that the special features on the DVD are limited to nothing but trailers because of how fantastic the film itself is. But through one of those trailers we see that a two-disc special edition of Zodiac is already being planned for release next year. Why this one would be so bare bones though is beyond me, but from what I understand, Fincher had a reason for it. I consider it a shame to recommend merely a rental here, but with the special edition coming out next year, you might as well wait. Rent it and check out a masterpiece of a film and then get your special feature-laden copy sometime in 2008. You are going to want to buy this DVD, trust me on that. Whether you can wait until next year or not, depends on you.

The DVD Lounge’s Ratings for Zodiac
CATEGORY
RATING
(OUT OF 10)
THE MOVIE

10
THE VIDEO

9
THE AUDIO

9
THE EXTRAS

.5
REPLAY VALUE

8
OVERALL
7
(NOT AN AVERAGE)