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Sunday, October 5, 2014

Gone Girl

There's a reason why Gone Girl has been on most best seller lists for months and months. It may not be because it's the most amazing piece of literature ever written, but it definitely sucks you in. The movie was no different.


I read Gone Girl about a year and a half ago. I was on a mystery binge. After reading it, I had to test out all of Gillian Flynn's other books, and can definitely say this one is by far the best... I could hardly get through Dark Places. But I digress. The book sucks you in. I quite literally could not put it down. And the best part? Very rarely do these twisty-turny suspense novels ever end in a way that surprises me, but this one did.

The ending is a bit polarizing- some argue it couldn't have ended any other way, and others wanted more, I don't know, justice? I was pleased to see that the movie DID follow the book, including the ending.

I forced my fiance to take me to see the movie in it's 2nd day in theaters by promising him never-ending appetizers at TGI Friday's. I will never understand this but TGIs is pretty much his favorite restaurant. But I had my first Shipyard Pumpkinhead of the season, and my favorite pecan-crusted chicken salad, so I was happy too. After loading up on candies at the gas station before to sneak into the theatre (I know, we are so bad), we sat in the big reclining seats at the AMC Braintree. In the very front row. My neck still hurts, but it was all that was left, the movie sold out days before.

And I can see why. Geoff hasn't read the book, but he loved the movie. That says a lot as he is quite the critic. He refuses to go to the movies for any movie longer than 2 hours, and this was almost 2.5 hours. The movie WAS about 20 mins too long, but that was my only issue.  I mean I read the book in like half a day. I get very defensive about movie's portrayals of books, but in my humble opinion it met all the criteria necessary for a true retelling, and the actors were on point. Rosamund Pike nailed Amy's icy cold demeanor, while Bed Affleck aced his usual frat-boy nonchalance perfectly. It was like he was made for this role. And for anyone who watches the HBO show The Leftovers, the woman who plays Nora played Ben's twin sister in the movie. She has a bigger role in the movie than I remember in the book, but she is a necessary character.

I will say this. Yes, Geoff liked the movie. But make no mistake, this is a movie for women. Full frontal male nudity (even if only for a second). Obligatory oral sex scene, but with a man giving it to a woman for a change. A woman in power, and a man helplessly trailing along behind her. I'm not saying Amy Dunne is a feminist character. She's not, she's a villain. A female villain, with all the traits of a female (emotional, dynamic) and also the characteristics of the best male villains (calculating, brilliant, ruthless). She's a villain, but not at women's expense. Ben Affleck's character is also a villain in his own way. That's what makes this story so interesting- the underlying question of, who is the bad guy? The answer to that questions changes throughout the story.

All in all, I will say that if you liked the book, you will like the movie. I do however encourage you to read the book first, if you haven't yet!

Did you read or see Gone Girl? What did you think???

4 comments:

  1. I haven't read the book (but have considered it a thousand times) but will most likely head off and see the movie - glad to hear it was good!

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    1. You should do both! I will admit however that a big benefit to seeing the movie is Ben Affleck hehe

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  2. I'm so glad you reviewed the movie because I've been debating whether or not to see it. I think the book is a lot like Marmite, you either love it or hate it. I personally didn't like it. The ending irritated me. That being said, I think I'd be willing to give the movie a shot.

    I just finished reading Mockingjay so I would have it read before the movie comes out this fall. Looking forward to that one!

    V
    Life+1

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    1. Yes the ending does leave something to be desired, but misery does love company right? Ha. I'm thinking about reading Mockingjay again just to refresh my memory before the movie. So excited for that one!

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