Rating: 5/5

Director David Fincher masterfully builds a mystery that examines how bad a marriage can go in one of the most suspenseful movies made in a while.

“Gone Girl” opens with Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) discovering that his wife, Amy Elliott-Dunne (Rosamund Pike) has gone missing on the morning of their anniversary. Naturally, the media jumps on Nick’s awkwardness and assumes he killed her. Nick turns to his sister Margo (Carrie Coon) and shady lawyer Tanner Bolt (Tyler Perry) to prove his innocence, but as the case continues it becomes apparent that Nick and Amy each have their own secrets.

Fincher’s brilliance is that he waits to show if Nick is innocent or not, leaving the audience unsure about how they feel about the main protagonist. When the film starts to give answers it still doesn’t hint where it’s going, but Fincher never lets the film feel aimless. Every scene is a piece of a large puzzle, and when that puzzle is complete and the credits roll, the grim sense that there was no other end for these characters sets in. The color of the film is muted, which creates a feeling of dread and hopelessness.

All the actors deliver strong performances. Affleck does a great job capturing the dual nature between “not sure if this guy is weird because he’s in an uncomfortable situation” or “weird because he’s hiding the murder of his wife” character of Nick. Tyler Perry, of all people, shows that he can act as he plays a smug lawyer dancing around the line of charming and egotistical. Rosamund Pike gives a tour-de-force performance as Amy. She can be fun and whimsical but also dark and mysterious when the scene calls for it.

Fincher creates a smart and vicious satire of how media sensationalizes missing person cases. Do not go see this expecting a feel-good movie; it is not for everyone. But for those who can handle it, the film will give something to think about. This is a dark film with dark subject matter. It looks at the prisons in our world: the literal ones and the ones we make for ourselves. This movie will punch you in the soul and leave you shaken.