By Luca Newton
Continuing this trend of ranking big filmmakers, today I will attempt to rank all of David Fincher's films based on personal opinions alone..
When someone used to ask who my favourite filmmaker was, I'd not really know who to answer with. Directors like Taika Waititi and Edgar Wright came to mind. However, it recently dawned upon me I had seen 5 movies by David Fincher, and 3 of them were 5 stars. So I took it upon myself to watch the remaining 5 films, to be able to see if they would also resonate with me in a similar way, and I can say that Fincher's form of filmmaking is so insanely engaging, that I appreciated them all. So, today I'm going to rank them all, not including Alien 3 (Which I've not seen).
#10 - The Game (1997)
Between this spot and the next one, they used to be the other way around, however I came to a realisation. The Game has the least to get out of it. It's a high concept film that absolutely fails on every level. The concept is pretty cool, it's just what they do with it that's boring. It is all dependant on the ending, which would be this big reveal. I have no issue with the ending, it fits the narrative perfectly. It's just that it hinges on you caring for Micheal Douglas' character, which I didn't.
To me, The Game is an entirely emotionless film. None of the character they introduced stuck with me, and I didn't care for anyone. They could've done a lot more with the concept if they had spent more time writing an actually interesting character we can follow and feel for. The main character is just an asshole at the start, which is okay. In this kind of film, you want that character arc to be strong. The problem is that there isn't really much of a character arc? He kinda is a dickhead, then he's really weirded out, then he fights with his brother, then he's sad his brother is dead, then he finds out it's just a prank, then hugs his brother. Wait, so was the arc supposed to be brothers who haven't gotten along well, understand each other better? Because that still didn't really change him individually. If it did, it wasn't shown well, because I was bored throughout the full runtime.
#9 - Mank (2020)
Fincher's latest, and not-so-greatest, film, Mank, came to Netflix in December last year. While critics adored it, giving it tons of Oscar nominations earlier this year. However, I didn't really like it. As a film, it's well made and has some incredible performances. But other than that, it's a very dull boring film that is very long and yet incredibly uneventful.
The thing with Fincher, as I'll continue to say later, is his intrinsic talent to tell engaging and thorough stories in a very long and slow film, and allow it to be entertaining and not at all boring at all despite how long it is. He manages to meld so many filmmaking techniques and perfect them. In Mank, this isn't a thing really. It's the story of Herman J. Mankiewicz writing Citizen Kane while being a raging alcoholic, and then attempting to get credit for it. Citizen Kane is a film I've seen several times, because of school. I had to analyse it, and because of that I have a deep appreciation for it, and I really like and enjoy it. It definitely is insanely impressive for its time. Mank sounded interesting to me, because I knew so much about Citizen Kane already. Sitting down to watch it, I was deeply disappointed. I couldn't tell you a single scene I can recall. Every scene felt like such a drag, and there was no real investment from me. The thing is, Mank really doesn't have much of narrative goal. It is about trying to write a film while being an alcoholic, but it never felt like it was building up to that in narrative. Instead it kind of took the performances over the story - and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Nomadland does that pretty well. But that film substitutes it for engaging and very realistic conversations about life and death, grief, nomads, etc. Mank isn't trying to be slice of life, so it just failed to engage me in anyway.
It's still a very well directed film, and it looks great and has a great cast. Beyond that, I can't really remember much about it. It's fine, just boring.
#8 - Panic Room (2002)
From here and onwards, I really like all the rest of these. Panic Room is about a single mother and her daughter, who move into a new house. But the first night sleeping there, they are caught in the middle of a planned robbery, which was supposed to happen before they moved in. Due to this, they hide inside their panic room - however, what the burglars want is within the panic room. This means a long tedious and tense night as the men downstairs are trying to get some money from the panic room, and the mother and her daughter are trying to get help, despite the phone line in the panic room not being connected yet.
Jodie Foster and Kristen Stewart were both great, and Jared Leto was also pretty good. Forrest Whittaker's character was a standout, I enjoyed his character arc. Overall, the film isn't a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a really tense, well directed film, that had me hooked. It's pretty basic for Fincher, but still very entertaining and well made, as all these films are.
#7 - The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Based off the popular novel, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is a mystery film just as Fincher is well known for, but unlike his other mystery films, this one is almost more dark? I don't know how that's possible, but while it isn't as gory as the later films, it has very dark themes to it, very real issues that are touched on. It engaged me because of that, and the incredible performances by Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara. I think some of my favourite scenes were with Rooney Mara, as she got revenge on those who have wronged her. The dynamic between the two definitely sold me on the film as a whole. But besides that, it wasn't quite as impactful or memorable as Fincher's other work. The mystery had a solid conclusion, but it isn't quite as good as the other two major reveals in Fincher films.
I can't really say too much on the film, because it is a great film that had a very well written and intriguing mystery. It's just not as good as the other Fincher movies to come. But this one takes the cake as the last Fincher film I watched.
#6 - Zodiac (2007)
I have this film a lot lower than a lot of people I know would. That's because, to many, Zodiac is Fincher's best film, or at least within the top 3. To be honest, this surprised me. When I first watched the film, I watched based on Netflix recommendation, and really enjoyed it. It's extremely long, but well paced. There's really not something wrong with it, but I personally thought it was great, but to see that people were throwing around masterpiece, I had to re-evaluate the film, and I don't think it's quite there. Personally I really like Zodiac, but for me it's not enough to be a masterpiece in my opinion.
What Zodiac does really well is the way it tells a real life story. The Zodiac Killer is a real killer, that was never actually found. This movie is then locked into never really resolving its conflict as it's an ongoing investigation. The film instead decides to lean into the urgency and obsession of the people trying to find the killer. And it is flawlessly done because of Fincher's top notch directing, and a captivating script, and Jake Gyllenhaal having an unforgettable performance. Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr are also in this too. I loved the scenes where we see victims being murdered, and holy fucking shit, that basement scene was the most tense scene out of most movies.
So why isn't it "quite there"? I can't answer that.. It was a bit too slow in some cases, but honestly that wasn't that much of an issue for me. Though, it did lose a lot of my focus halfway in, but it was back on not long after. There's not much wrong with the film, it just didn't do the same thing to me than other films do. It's very odd to explain, but I can appreciate the masterclass direction, tight script and harrowing and obsessive pace to it. I can see why it would be someone's favourite now. It just wasn't mine.
#5 - The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button (2008)
What the hell is this doing this high in the ranking? Honestly, this is definitely the hottest take here. I really REALLY like The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Other Fincher fans disagree, and tend to relegate this film to the bottom of their lists. Well, I disagree. I'm not going to say it's Fincher's best, but it's definitely Fincher's most underrated (by fans, not critics since it was very present at the Oscars).
Benjamin Button is the first Fincher film that is PG-13, and it is very distinctly different in tone from anything Fincher has ever done before. However, I think that it shares one fundamental aspect of Fincher's flawless direction - pace. Many people say how long is this film is, and it definitely felt nearly 3 hours long, but it was filled to the brim with so much stuff to be enthralled by, I was engaged. This is a high concept film, I guess I'm a sucker for those, but Brad Pitt plays Benjamin Button - as a baby he was abandoned because he looked all pruned. As he grew older, he actually looked elderly. As a 7 year old, he looked like he was 93. He de-ages through the course of the film until he is a foetus. It's a love story within that which makes it pretty hopeful but also heart-breaking. It has a really heart-warming tone to it that helped me to fall for this film. It's not flawless by any means, but personally I loved it. All aspects of it are extremely well done, from performances to the cinematography. The film was very clearly Oscar-bait and was very popular at the Oscars, so many think it's overrated and not very good, but I think it's overlooked by many just because it's very different to the standard Fincher flick.
#4 - Seven (1995)
Ironically, Seven is 4th. But honestly, this being this low isn't a surprise at all. It's the first one of these that I'd call a masterpiece. This is the last murder mystery film of the lot, and it is the best one in my opinion.
There's something about a really good murder mystery film. Two detectives working at a case tirelessly, and once they figure it out, it all clicks and blows you away. Seven does this to a monumental level. I don't think I have ever been as invested to find out the killer as I was watching this. It was perfectly built up, in such a way that each time a dead person was found it was intensely gory and thematically fitting. The grit and grounded aspects of Seven really make it feel harrowingly real. And can we just talk about the end. The reveal was excellently done, but was proceeds is the most disturbing ending I've seen in any film. I was in complete and utter shock, my mind was absolutely blown. It's all thanks to the masterful direction from Fincher, and the brilliant performances from Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman and REDACTED (you know if you know).
It impacted me significantly, and is absolutely one of the best films of all time, but it definitely rides on that ending, so it's not in my top 3 from Fincher.
#3 - Fight Club (1999)
Many people would call Fight Club one of the greatest movies of all time, and yet it's not my favourite still. It is still, however, a masterpiece. I think that this movie is overall more solid than Seven in that the entire film is consistently masterful. No shade at Seven though of course. What is so great about Fight Club is just how.. perfect it is? It's hard to really describe, but every element of filmmaking is at its peak when its used in this film. I had a consistently great time with this film. From the very start to the end, this film OOZES with personality and flare. It's just such a snappy, entertaining movie.
The film is about Edward Norton's character living a mundane life, but he finds pleasure in pretending to be sick or have issues to get into help groups to get approval and help him sleep. However, when a girl does the same thing, he takes it as her taking over his territory. So he goes abroad to find new clubs, and meets Brad Pitt's character, who he gets along with extremely well. So well that they move in together and start a Fight Club where the only rules are not to mention Fight Club and to NOT mention Fight Club. Underlying is a decent message on toxic masculinity, and Edward Norton and Brad Pitt were phenomenal in this. The twist blew me away, I won't spoil, but it makes a lot of sense and is very well executed. Sure some of the CGI was noticeably behind its time, but I'm willing to forgive that. It's a classic.
The only reason it's not any higher is because, while I really did enjoy the big twist, I can see how the message is very aggressively put out there, and kind of takes you out of left field. Like the ending is genuinely some crazy shit, and either you dig it or you despise it. I dug it, but you can make an argument for why you don't. While other opinions don't affect mine, I just prefer these other 2.
#2 - Gone Girl (2014)
This movie is so aggressive but so flawlessly executed, it's genuinely one of the most thoroughly engaging films I have ever watched. I was in absolute awe of every aspect of this film. From the flawless casting of Ben Affleck as the protagonist, who is often even unreliable to the protagonist, or the harrowing yet spectacularly seductive performance from Rosamund Pike which is career-defining.
Gone Girl is based on the novel of the same name, and follows Nick Dunne as he finds his wife completely missing on her birthday. However, when he calls the police, he starts to realise that there is a large amount of evidence leading to a potential murder, and he is the prime suspect. The film goes deep into how the media controls the narrative of any news in sick and twisted ways, and how to deal with the overbearing presence of the media, and how to deal with it. It's a very stressful movie with how you're constantly changing your suspicions, and even by the end of it, you really don't have this happy ending. It's beautifully written in such a way that hooks you and locks you in, with constant uses of an unreliable narrator. It's just CINEMA. Just absolute cinema. There's not much else to say about it.
#1 - The Social Network (2010)
Absolutely my favourite Fincher film would have to go to The Social Network. Not only is it my favourite Fincher film, it is one of my favourite movies of all time. To me, it's a flawless masterpiece. But it's not just that, it's also kind of the most important movie of the last decade in my opinion..
The Social Network is about the scandal of Facebook where Mark Zuckerberg was sued by Eduardo Savarin and the Winklevoss twins on accounts of stealing their website, and screwing over Eduardo financially, by essentially cutting his profit by a significant amount and only him, despite him being a co-founder of the company. The film works so well because it is kind of a character study on a person with horrendous social skills. It's a story about 2 friends falling out big time, and in that way it's almost a tragedy. But it's just completely significant because of how it shows us what the modern era is like. Zuckerberg was one of the biggest parts in how the internet became used by everybody and (literally) their mothers. It's also a cautionary tale of how to handle success. So, it's just incredibly relevant, but as a film, its flawless direction is astonishing. Fincher directed his ass off with this film, and just everything about the direction just makes the film that much better. Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield are outstanding in this film. That scene at the end, when shit hits the fan - Andrew Garfield acted the SHIT out of that. He should've won an Oscar for that..
The Social Network is a monumentally significant contemporary masterpiece, and a display of Fincher at his best. But also Sorkin too, with his flawless script. It just all melds together into an unforgettable film I absolutely adore. I heard Sorkin and Eisenberg are down for a sequel? Get Fincher on it, and then we'd get another masterpiece.
Well, that's my ranking done. Do you agree or not? Fincher is absolutely one of the best filmmakers working today, and my favourite. I'm always eager to see what he has in store next. I heard his next movie stars Micheal Fassbender, playing a psychopath - which sounds incredible.
Thanks for reading.
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