Nerds That Geek Movie Review: 'Zodiac'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​Throughout our rich history, there is one act that humans commit, that continues to confound and fascinate us...murder. For one, it is unnatural to say the least since our lives are designed to be filled with as many experiences as possible before we naturally pass into the great beyond, so to see one human rob the life of another is shocking to say the least.

But our fascination goes beyond the horror of the act, it's the why that equally piques our curiosity. We often wonder what would drive someone to cause that kind of harm to their fellow man and that fascination is what has helped drive the Serial Killer into their unfortunate limelight. The care, and detail that goes into their heinous acts are poured over by all of us, and for some...to an obsessive level, as was explored in the 2007 film, Zodiac. 

Now this is a film that us back in time to explore the origins and pursuit of one of America's most prolific and mysterious serial killers...The Zodiac. Active in the 1960's and 1970's, this killer used cryptic messages to announce his murderous intentions and staked his claim on multiple murders in the Northern California, San Francisco bay area, and despite all the clues he left behind, a suspect was never brought to light. But rather than play the conjecture game or dramatize it up, Director David Fincher opted to look at the murders from a vastly different angle than most films in this genre do, from the outside looking in. This is a story that revolves around the man who wrote a book on the Zodiac case, Robert Graysmith. Robert was at the time a cartoonist for the San Francisco Chronicle, who was captivated by the case and the killer's constant love of taunting the police and the public, leading him on a personal quest to uncover the true identity of the Zodiac Killer.

It is that quest that makes this film so absolutely fascinating. Robert is a driven character, a man who rarely gets involved with the world around him until he sees an actual chance to do some good and well...while his obsession with this case costs him plenty in his life, it's that quest for knowledge, to understand a monster and bring him to light that keeps the audience hooked and cheering for Robert to succeed. Especially considering, we are given just enough when it comes to the Zodiac to maintain that air of mystery and even as the walls start closing in on Arthur Leigh Allen, there's still sense of doubt surrounding the man that never quite confirms nor denies that he is indeed the Zodiac, at least not until the end, which we won't bother to spoil here.

Simply because of the fact, you need to see this film if you haven't already. Not only for the fascinating story of one of America's greatest modern mysteries, but for the star-studded cast that turns in one powerhouse performance after another. You really can't go wrong with Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey, Jr. popping up together in one film. But really, at its core, Zodiac is about one thing...obsession; since that drives every single character in its film. Our villain is obsessed with murder and chaos, our detectives are obsessed with justice and Robert...all he wants is the truth and that's refreshing to see in a film from this genre. It goes beyond the bloodthirsty nature of a killer and the fear they produce...it's about how the rest of the world sees such cases, and how obsession, can sometimes be a good thing.

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