Movie Review: Gone Girl

Going into a screening of David Fincher’s film adaptation of Gone Girl, I wondered if I would be as captivated and connected to the story as I had been with Gillian Flynn’s novel. Since I knew all the twists that would await, I feared that I wouldn’t care about the characters anymore. 

With Rosamund Pike and Ben Affleck’s performances as Amy and Nick Dunne, I ultimately found myself sucked in once more.

The story opens up on Nick Dunne, and the day his wife goes missing. From there, we hear his wife Amy’s journal entries. We see the happy moments of their first encounter, their sugary sweet first kiss, and their marriage proposal. From there, the relationship slowly begins to fall apart, as we see them lose their jobs and relocate from New York City to Nick’s hometown in Missouri. Amy’s entries become more and more ominous, and suspicions fall on Nick as the evidence is stacked against him.

Author Gillian Flynn wrote the screenplay, and her guidance most likely added to the success that this is a very faithful adaptation. There are aspects that may have been too difficult to bring to the screen though, since the novel focuses so much on internal reactions and the varying perspectives of Amy and Nick. There were small moments I missed from the book, but the film doesn’t suffer from the subtle changes.

The performances are what truly works in the film though. Even the surprising casting choices of Neil Patrick Harris and Tyler Perry fit in well amongst the dark tones of the film. Since the story provides such a varied set of emotions, it makes sense to provide a mixed bag of actors to portray these complicated characters. 

The concluding moments of the book seemed to have caused a lot of book-throwing and frustration, and while those readers will probably still be disappointed, the final eery shot of the movie will stick with you as it fades away.

After the film ended, I found myself wishing I could have wiped my brain clean in order to see this movie with an unknowing mind. I wonder how my experience would have differed and if I would have enjoyed it more. That being said, Gone Girl is a unique and memorable story whether in book or film form.

Read my Gone Girl book review here.