Fight Club (Widescreen Edition)

Customer reviews:

Its Name is Robert Paulson, 2008-09-22
There is no other movie more appropriate and prophetic about the times we live in, so this review warrants a departure from what you're used to. First I'll say some relevant facts about me as a reviewer of this film and about what this movie is *not*, then we''ll take a look at the facts about what the movie *is*.

I'm not under twenty-five. I'm not even a 'twenty-something'. If you think you're above or beyond taking a good look at this movie, and considering what its subtext might be, you're f.o.s., you're a coward. You are scared of anything that might make you take a second look at your priorites and the way that you actually spend the minutes and hours of your days. Control your fear. See the movie.

I'm not white. You don't have to be white to like this movie. That's another evasion. Stop running away. Stop ducking and hiding. See the movie.

This is not a fascist movie. The sort of people who call it fascist have no idea of what 'fascist' is. Mussolini mentioned later on in his career that given a choice he would've renamed fascism 'corporatism'. Want to get a clue? Take a good look around the country that you live in. I'm a veteran of the current conflict and I say this to you.

This is not a "gruesome" movie. It is a movie that involves violence, nothing more. If after twenty-five years of eagerly watching a steady escalation of violence and gore you find this movie "painful to watch" -- while you apathetically sit around letting other people do your fighting for you (while artfully pretending to be apalled) -- you're a ridiculous wuss. Just see the movie.

This is not just a 'guy-flick'. I have been lucky enough to know a fair number of women who chose to buy or rent, then watch and re-watch this movie with no prompting from me... They were a lot of fun too, so that's something to consider. See the movie.

The fact is that Fight Club has 1376 reviews dating from 1999 forward on Amazon, the vast majority of them five-star (refer to this webpage).

The fact is that after it "failed" upon its commercial release (refer to the Wikipedia entry) and got panned by multiple paid reviewers, its financial success and their reviews did a u-turn by 2004 and has since placed as one of the top ten films of the last hundred years. Obviously there was enough 'meat' and substance here to attract and retain a cult. I hope Director David Finch is pleased. Even when people don't know how to put the Truth into words they know it when they see it, and they know what they like.

Regarding the Cast:

It was Brad's role as 'Tyler Durden' that made me truly respect Mr. Pitt's work. It's said that he supplied all the clothes that he wore for his role (culled from the thrift shops of the Silverlake District). If that's true, then that's just one more reason to say 'Bravo!'

Ed Norton might've been the only actor at that time who could have got on the ground and gotten on down with that role in triple-x style. He took his part as the film's protagonist *to school*...

Helena Bonham Carter's character 'Marla' is stronger, more fun and more 'together' than 98% of the scared fakes you meet in any office. Would it be such a bad thing if more women got in touch with their 'inner-Marla' and, for figurative example, took 'her' out for drinks? Well, I guess that'll have to keep 'til the near-future.

Fight Club is provocative entertainment. Those who get distracted by the violence are looking for excuses to be distracted, or to distract *you*... There are those who have a vested interest in making sure people continue 'working jobs that they hate so they can buy garbage they don't need'.

Fight Club speaks directly about 'The Wasteland' that the supposedly well-adjusted live in ("our Great War's a Spiritual War").

Fight Club straight-arms right through a whole crowd of taboos.

Given the times we live in, with the Fight Club scenario coming true before our eyes (sans the home-made dynamite), there's no better moment to post this review. 1999 is a long time gone, with its smug assurance and bovine trust. That was the world that put Wall Street in the state it's in today, lid nailed shut, coins on eyelids, talking out of its grave for all intents and purposes. Fight Club lived to look down upon it and all its minions and say: Your name is Robert Paulson!.

Great movie, 2008-09-21
Fantastic movie based on a fantastic book. It's a little bit different than the book (story-wise), but all the changes were good adaptations to the media difference. Edward Norton and Brad Pitt both play their characters perfectly.