The Game - Forgotten Fincher

David Fincher is a visual master. Every movie he's made has been gorgeous. He was one of the first wave of MTV crossover directors, starting with music videos and moving over into feature films. And unlike most of his MTV peers, Fincher is adept at composing and actually holding a shot. Sure, he uses fast cutting when he needs to, but he does not overly stylize his shots just for the sake of flash. There's depth to his compositions, and he has an eye for unique and effective shots. He has a reputation for being a perfectionist, spending long periods of time in post-production tweaking the lighting, adjusting color depth, and making sure that every last frame of film looks spectacular. (For a wonderfully informative example of this process, rent the Bonus Materials disc for the collector's edition of Seven from Netflix and watch the featurettes, where Fincher reworks a scene for the viewer, making all the adjustments in real time).

As of this writing, David Fincher has directed 6 theatrically-released films. His first, Alien 3, was a failure both critically and commercially. Fincher's direction, however, was universally praised. In fact, critic Roger Ebert has stated on numerous occasions that Alien 3 is "the best-looking bad movie I've ever seen." His sophomore effort, Seven, was a huge success all around. Currently Seven can always be found in the top 50 on IMDB's user-generated, ever-adjusting Top 250 Movies list. So, too, can Fincher's 4th effort, Fight Club (as of this writing, Seven is ranked #38, and Fight Club is at #28). His 5th film, Panic Room, received good reviews and had a successful (though not smashing) box office run. The best reviews Fincher has ever received came from his most recent outing, Zodiac, and may have put him into consideration for an Oscar nomination.

Missing from that resume is Fincher's 3rd film, which was largely overlooked at the time of release and continues to be largely overlooked on DVD. In fact, it remains Fincher's only film not to have a multi-disc DVD edition available.

The Game was plagued by problems. Jodie Foster was set to star, but was then dropped by the production company, Polygram (which Foster later sued for breach of contract). The lead character was changed to a man, and much of the story had to be rewritten (Fincher brought in his friend, and Seven-scribe, Andrew Kevin Walker to assist). Michael Douglas was brought in as the lead, and the film was shot with a reduced budget (a result of the legal troubles Polygram was having). The Game was released in 1997 to general indifference. Critics enjoyed it, but did not praise it, and audiences didn't bother. After 3 months of release, the film barely broke even. The Game currently spends its life occupying DVD bargain bins, and still not being purchased or viewed. And it's a damn shame, since The Game is a well-made, well-acted, and tense thriller that deserves better.

In The Game, Michael Douglas plays Nicholas Van Orton, who is a cold, enormously wealthy and absolutely humorless businessman. On Nicholas' 48th birthday (the age at which his father committed suicide), he is payed a visit by his younger brother Conrad (Sean Penn). Conrad gives him a gift card for company called CRS (Consumer Recreation Services), and tells Nicholas to call the company ("They make your life fun. You know what that is, fun? You've seen other people have it."). Nicholas does contact the company, and they subject him to various physical and psychological tests, telling him that they are using the data to better create his "game." In fact, no one will tell Nicholas exactly what the "game" is. When he asks for details, he is only given cryptic responses and vague deflections ("We provide whatever's lacking," & "Think of it as a great vacation, except instead of going to it, it comes to you"). While it seems unlikely that a powerful man like Nicholas would ever get involved in something without knowing every last detail, he is intrigued. His life has fallen into monotony, he has pushed away everyone he loves, and he often wonders if he is destined to his father's fate. While he can't let his excitement show on the surface, he is enjoying the possibility of some new experiences.

What happens next is impractical, if not impossible, to describe, save to say that his entire life falls into chaos. While both Van Orton and the audience know that this may all just be part of the game, the film maintains a constant state of paranoia and fear. After all, if neither Nicholas or the audience know exactly what the game is, how can one tell if the game has started to spiral out of control? That is, of course, if the game ever existed in the first place. That is the key to this film's success, and that is how it is able to hold the audience in its grip until the credits roll. The stakes just get higher and more dangerous as things progress, and there is an increasing possibility that the game has gone off the rails, or that there were no rails to begin with. All of this would make for a good thrill ride regardless of director, but with Fincher at the helm it becomes exhaustingly tense. If you should watch (or re-watch) this movie, pay close attention to the wooden clown scene. Notice how the clown is lit, how it occupies the frame. It seems that at any moment, the clown will comes alive in one of those "BOO!!!!" moments. Yet is never does. It just sits there, looking creepy as hell, and adding an extra level of tension to the entire scene that plays around it.

I watch this movie at least once a year to remind myself what a thriller is capable of when in the right hands.