Zodiac (2007)

ZODIAC  (2007)  ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢
    D: David Fincher
    Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr.,
    Anthony Edwards, Brian Cox, Chloe Sevigny,
    Philip Baker Hall, Elias Koteas, Dermot Mulroney,
    Candy Clark, James Le Gros, Clea Du Vall
A gripping detective story about the decades-long search for San Francisco's most notorious serial murderer, the real-life model for the "Scorpio" character in "Dirty Harry". Robert Downey Jr.'s a reporter at the San Francisco Chronicle. Jake Gyllenhaal's an editorial cartoonist. Mark Ruffalo's a cop with a fondness for animal crackers. They're all drawn to the quest, but it's Gyllenhaal whose character stays with it the longest and carries the film's last 30 or 40 minutes. The newsroom scenes conspicuously resemble the newsroom scenes in "All the President's Men". The sound work effectively blends amplified background noise and soft-spoken dialogue in a way that makes you pay attention. There are even a couple of playful references to "Dirty Harry". Officially, the Zodiac killer has never been identified, but by the time the movie's over, Fincher and company have made a pretty good guess. Watching how they get there should keep you glued to your seat.