Zodiac (2007)

A San Francisco cartoonist becomes an amateur detective obsessed with tracking down the Zodiac killer.

Director:

David Fincher

Writers:

James Vanderbilt (screenplay), Robert Graysmith (book)

Stars:

Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Edwards

27 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jake Gyllenhaal	...	Robert Graysmith
Mark Ruffalo	...	Inspector David Toschi
Anthony Edwards	...	Inspector William Armstrong
Robert Downey Jr.	...	Paul Avery
Brian Cox	...	Melvin Belli
John Carroll Lynch	...	Arthur Leigh Allen
Richmond Arquette	...	Zodiac 1 / Zodiac 2
Bob Stephenson	...	Zodiac 3
John Lacy	...	Zodiac 4
Chloë Sevigny	...	Melanie
Ed Setrakian	...	Al Hyman
John Getz	...	Templeton Peck
John Terry	...	Charles Thieriot
Candy Clark	...	Carol Fisher
Elias Koteas	...	Sgt. Jack Mulanax

Storyline

A serial killer in the San Francisco Bay Area taunts police with his letters and cryptic messages. We follow the investigators and reporters in this lightly fictionalized account of the true 1970's case as they search for the murderer, becoming obsessed with the case. Based on Robert Graysmith's book, the movie's focus is the lives and careers of the detectives and newspaper people.

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Plot Keywords:

zodiac | cartoonist | zodiac killer | reporter | police | 

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Taglines:

Based on the true story of America's most notorious serial killer.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some strong killings, language, drug material and brief sexual images

Details

Official Sites:

Paramount Pictures [us] Warner Bros [fr]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 March 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Chronicles

Filming Locations:

4th Street, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$65,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£818,369 (UK) (18 May 2007)

Gross:

£3,440,289 (UK) (22 June 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros, Phoenix Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

157 min 162 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

As Robert Graysmith drives his son to school, the broadcaster on his car radio makes a reference to the then-forthcoming free concert by The Rolling Stones at the Altamont Speedway. It was Melvin Belli's recommendation to the Rolling Stones to hold this particular concert.

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Goofs

In the scene aboard the PSA flight to southern California, the flight attendant makes an announcement over the speaker stating that "smoking is allowed only in the last six aisles." No airplanes have six aisles; presumably she meant to say "the last six rows."

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Quotes

[first lines]
Mike Mageau: Where have you been? I've been waiting since 7:00.

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Crazy Credits

Closing disclaimer: This film is based upon Robert Graysmith's books "Zodiac" and "Zodiac Unmasked", actual historical events and public records. Dialogue and certain events and characters contained in the film were created for the purposes of dramatization.

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Connections

Features Dirty Harry (1971)

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Soundtracks

"Lowdown"
Written by Boz Scaggs (as William Scaggs) and David Paich
Performed by Boz Scaggs
Courtesy of Columbia Records
By Arrangement with SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT

User Reviews

Class Act

First up (and it's already been said)...this film is not going to appeal to the crash-bang- wallop-attention-span-of-a-bored-gnat brigade out there. Having read a lot of the reviews here, everyone seems to be divided in two. Love it...hate it. Which way will you go?

Yes, it's long. But let's face it, this is not a film that can be wrapped up in an hour and a half. There's an awful lot of detail involved in this case. David Fincher was very thorough in his research and full marks to him. This is an excellent, compelling film for anyone interested in true crime and general detective work.

I saw this film a few hours ago and was completely absorbed by it. The opening 4th of July sequence is worthy of the ticket price alone. And I challenge anyone to listen to "Hurdy Gurdy Man" by Donovan without a cold chill running down their spine after watching this...

The main performances are excellent - Robert Downey Jr and Jake Gyllenhaal in particular are a standout. Any feminists out there won't be happy with the rather one-dimensional women's roles (and I happen to be female), but this is not what this film is about. It's about a handful of men's obsessive involvement with one case. And these men ARE utterly obsessed. And after so much taunting by the Zodiac with his letters and cyphers, who can blame them for their obsession?

As for the depiction of the murders, they are quite shocking in their brief brutality with absolutely no glamorous or excessive lingering shots of the aftermath. This makes them infinitely more real and much more disturbing...

Combine this with utterly believable dialogue, a superb soundtrack and marvellous production design and you have one classy movie. For all those tired of your average eye and brain-candy fodder...Go see. For those who can't appreciate a class act when you see it, you've missed out...