Fight Club (1999)

Director:

David Fincher

Writers (WGA):

Chuck Palahniuk (novel)
Jim Uhls (screenplay)

Release Date:

15 October 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

How much can you know about yourself if you've never been in a fight?

Plot:

An office employee and a soap salesman build a global organization to help vent male aggression.

Plot Keywords:

Club | Fight | Insomnia | Boxing | Office

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 4 wins & 14 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Tue. Feb. 16	10:30 PM	AMC
Wed. Feb. 17	2:30 PM	AMC

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Edward Norton	...	The Narrator
Brad Pitt	...	Tyler Durden
Helena Bonham Carter	...	Marla Singer
Meat Loaf	...	Robert 'Bob' Paulson (as Meat Loaf Aday)
Zach Grenier	...	Richard Chesler
Richmond Arquette	...	Intern
David Andrews	...	Thomas
George Maguire	...	Group Leader
Eugenie Bondurant	...	Weeping Woman
Christina Cabot	...	Group Leader
Sydney 'Big Dawg' Colston	...	Speaker
Rachel Singer	...	Chloe
Christie Cronenweth	...	Airline Attendant
Tim De Zarn	...	Inspector Bird
Ezra Buzzington	...	Inspector Dent

Also Known As:

Fight Club (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for disturbing and graphic depiction of violent anti-social behavior, sexuality and language.

Runtime:

139 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

UK:18 (video re-rating) (2005) | USA:R (certificate #36857) | Malaysia:18PL | Italy:VM14 (cut) | Italy:VM18 (DVD rating) (uncut) | Brazil:18 | USA:TV-MA (TV rating) | South Korea:15 (cable rating) (cut) | Argentina:18 | Australia:R | Belgium:KNT | Canada:18+ (Québec) | Canada:18A | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 (original rating) | Finland:K-16 (video rating) (cut) | Finland:K-18 (DVD rating) | France:-16 | Germany:18 (bw) | Hong Kong:IIB | Iceland:16 | Ireland:18 (cut) | Israel:16 | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Norway:18 | Portugal:M/18 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:18 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:18 (canton of Vaud) | UK:18 (cut) | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating) | Singapore:R(A) | Philippines:R-18

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Fox 2000 Pictures

Trivia:

After director David Fincher was finished editing the film, the studio executives were baffled by the piece, and unsure how to market it. Fincher had wanted a highly unique marketing campaign which would mirror the film's theme of anti-commercialism, but already worried about the possible backlash against the film, the Fox executives refused to go ahead with Fincher's idea (two of Fincher's trailers can be found on the DVD in the 'Internet Spots' section). Instead, a campaign was launched which was built largely upon the presence of Brad Pitt in the film, as well as concentrating on the fighting (which plays a minor role in the actual film itself). The campaign was highly criticized as giving the impression that the film was basically just about men beating each other up, completely ignoring the comic and satiric elements of the narrative, and for marketing the film to the wrong audience. David Fincher was particularly incensed when he saw ads for the film during WWE and UFC programming.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: After the scene in the bathroom where Tyler threatens the police chief, as the waiters are emerging into the parking lot, you see Bob's (Meat Loaf) pants fall down, briefly revealing the body suit he was wearing.

Quotes:

[first lines]
[Tyler points a gun into the Narrator's mouth]
Narrator: [voiceover] People are always asking me if I know Tyler Durden.
Tyler Durden: Three minutes. This is it - ground zero. Would you like to say a few words to mark the occasion?
Narrator: ...i... ann... iinn... ff... nnyin...
Narrator: [voiceover] With a gun barrel between your teeth, you speak only in vowels.
[Tyler removes the gun from the Narrator's mouth]
Narrator: I can't think of anything.
Narrator: [voiceover] For a second I totally forgot about Tyler's whole controlled demolition thing and I wonder how clean that gun is.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Propeller Guy (2003)

Soundtrack:

GIRL FROM YPSILANTI

Brilliant Direction and Superb Acting

Fight Club is a brash slap in the face of consumerism and the working dead. It questions reality. It is strikingly thought provoking and visually stimulating. The direction is incredibly brilliant. Director David Fincher (Aliens, Se7en and The Game) is at his finest here warping both space and time, dropping in things here and there to make things clear. Edward Norton is excellent as Jack, the narrator of the movie. He is a nerdy insomniac who catalog shops at Ikea and has a going nowhere job. Brad Pitt is dynamic as Tyler Durden, an anarchistic man who lives in a run-down abandoned house and makes and sells soap for a living. Helen Bonham Carter is also great as Marla Singer, the manic-depressive chain-smoking woman in both their lives. Her role is critical and she plays it well.

There has been some controversy about the violence in this film but it is not gratuitous violence, it is part of the story and serves it well. It is much less than what you would see in your average Hollywood blockbuster. This is actually an insightful film and in many ways similar to American Beauty, although this film is much more in your face about it's message. If you are squeamish, you may not want to see it. There are some very painful bloody scenes, but if you can stomach it, then check it out. There is also a huge twist in this film that almost rivals the twist at the end of The Sixth Sense. And I must admit, it is the twist in this film that made me really love it. The best audience for this film is men in their 20's or 30's, but anyone that can appreciate film as a modern art should like it. One of the best films of 1999.