The movie opens on a gorgeous Amy Dunne (Rosamund Pike) staring into a camera from where she lies sprawled across a bed. The narration of her husband, Nick (Ben Affleck) begs the question ‘what are you thinking?’ The question we ask our spouses…
It’s their fifth anniversary but things have gone bad. Nick comes home to learn his house has- what appears to be – a break-in, a possible kidnapping of Amy, and broken glass and blood traces everywhere. He’s not sure what’s happened and neither are we, but apparently we have 148 minutes to figure it out.
We learn through “Amazing Amy’s” diary that their relationship began so “crazy, stupid, happy” the night she met Nick, who wrote for men’s magazines so that made him an expert on what to wear and what to eat. But while his career changed and he ended up owing a bar, Amy stays a writer….the perfect-upper-east-side-Ivy-league educated girl whose book series ‘Amazing Amy” has been a hit.
But then life changes. Nick’s mother has cancer, the 2010 recession hits their perfect Manhattan world and they’re forced to move out to the burbs. That’s when things begin to twist (and without giving away the ending to the five people out there who may have not read the book) Neil Patrick Harris adds to their circus, as Amy’s obsessed ex.
Nick depends on his sister (Carrie Coon) for moral support as the story weaves the ‘whodunnit’ in a way that won’t disappoint the Gillian Flynn book fans. It’s actually better then the novel (how often can you say that of a film?) thanks to the faithful and crafty hand of David Fincher (Se7en and Social Network). He brings the best performance out of Affleck since his role as George Reeve’s in Hollywoodland, really tapping into Affleck’s natural evasive demeanor.
Part Sleeping with the Enemy and a lot of Twin Peaks…damn girl, Rosamund Pike’s Gone Girl gives Basic Instinct’s Sharon Stone a run for her money! ♕ ♚ ♛ 1/2