Review Rewind: 'Fight Club'

The movie: "Fight Club"

The year: 1999

The people: Edward Norton as the complex unnamed narrator and protagonist. Brad Pitt as the seductive soap salesman Tyler Durden. Helena Bonham Carter as the care-free support group impostor Marla Singer. Jared Leto as the high-energy, platinum-blonde-haired member of Fight Club Angel Face. Michael Lee Aday (aka Meat Loaf) as Robert Paulson, an overly-estrogenized friend of the main character from a testicular cancer support group, and David Fincher, the innovative director of the film.

The non-revealing plot: The narrator's job pushes him into such a numb state that he attends support group meetings for diseases he doesn’t have. After one meeting, the narrator agrees to punch Durden, who he meets in a bar, in the back parking lot. Though the narrator enjoys Durden's company at first — they live together in an abandoned house and start a fighting club together — the main character soon realizes the soap salesman is not who he believed him to be. Soon, the duo are leading a radical group in creating major public havoc to make Durden's ideological points.

Unofficial genre: Gritty psychological thriller mixed with dark situational comedy and loads of testosterone (except for Robert Paulson). "Fight Club" is heavy on violence, but it is all used to make a point about society, even more relevant in a post-9/11 world, and the male psyche at large.

How the movie fits into its genre's history: "Fight Club" is the ultimate psychological thriller focusing on modern masculinity. It also features general cultural critiques on advertising and consumerism, which sets it apart from other psychological thrillers.

My opinion (emotional): I wouldn’t say I felt a deep connection to any of the characters on a personal level since none of the characters are particularly redeeming. However, the screenplay does a fantastic job of eliciting reactions from viewers by causing very strong emotions towards each character. Whether it be empathy for Paulson, awe of Durden or shock from the narrator, viewers are bound to formulate a strong opinion on each character. There is a sort of dark ray of warm light emanating from the bleak, grimy cardiac core of this film.

My opinion (technical): This movie is fantastic on the technical side. Most of the movie is set at night, which serves as a perfectly dark tone for the events that transpire. There is excellent camera work, particularly during Durden's iconic speech regarding the eight rules of Fight Club. There are innovative special effects, such as when the narrator describes a possible explanation for an explosion in his apartment building. The movie moves at a brilliant pace, so though its 151-minute runtime seems like it’d be a chore to get through, the film never feels boring even once. Most of the main characters undergo a significant trajectory throughout the film, which is very satisfying to watch. The final shot of the film, which is one of my favorite scenes in movie history, uses awe-inspiring effects, meticulous framing and a legendary song choice to overwhelm the viewer with acute emotions. Once the credits start to roll, you’ll be awestruck, still recovering from what you’ve just witnessed.

Overall rating: Because the technical side of this film is so incredible, it more than makes up for any emotional lacking (not that it’s completely devoid of this), and thus I would give this film a perfect 10/10 rating.

If you like this, you’ll also like: "American Psycho" (2000), "Shutter Island" (2010) and "Memento" (2000).