Gone Girl (2014)

Nominated for Best Actress     Ugh, I hate that I loved this so much.  Part of me wanted to punch my TV and part of me wanted to take notes.

Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) wants to end his marriage to socialite Amy (Rosamund Pike) after seven years.  The couple have been on the rocks and Nick wants out.  He comes home after a couple of errands on his anniversary to find signs of a scuffle in his living room and his wife missing.  A nation-wide manhunt begins and every facet of Nick and Amy's relationship is put under scrutiny.  As unsavory things come to light, Nick gets the terrible suspicion that someone is framing him for his wife's murder.

Ok, SPOILER WARNINGS now because I don't really know how much I'm going to give away.  If you don't want to know anything, stop now and go watch the movie.



Okay, now that they're gone, let's get down to business.  OMG FUCK AMAZING AMY.  What a total bitch.  I think what makes me angriest is that I actually knew somebody that pulled this kind of shit.  Not to this extent, granted, but she also falsely accused several people of sexual assault for personal gain.  No one could ever prove anything because it was always a he-said/she-said but once an idea like that is out there, it has the potential to wreck careers and lives.  There is a special hell for people who devalue the legitimate trauma of others with their lies.

That being said, I'll be damned if that woman wasn't a fucking paragon of organization and forethought.  That's a level of evil planning that is just awe-inspiring.  If she could turn her sociopathic brain towards solving the world's problems instead of spiteful malice, I'm pretty sure the sequel would be about an extinction event.  Rosamund Pike is not going to win an Oscar for this but if there's an award out there for Most Evil on Screen, she'd have it on lock.  Ben Affleck is serviceable, but the supporting cast is really where it's at.  Kim Dickens, Tyler Perry, Neil Patrick Harris, Missi Pyle, Sela Ward and Casey Wilson (Penny from Happy Endings) are all outstanding and all added so much color to what would otherwise be too tense of a movie.

I already know I'm going to buy it.  I think the anger will fade after a few more watches and then I'll just be left with the admiration and the joy of showing it to others and seeing their reactions.