Film 52/52: Zodiac (2007)


We officially close out this series with David Fincher's Zodiac. He assembled quite a cast to tell the story of the serial killer who haunted the Bay Area for several years from the late 60s to early 70s. I recall reading Robert Graysmith's book (on which the film is based) when I worked at the bookstore back in the late 80s, but had forgotten most of the details of the case since then. What I did know was that the case inspired Scorpio, the killer Clint Eastwood took out in the original Dirty Harry (1971).

Jake Gyllenhall plays Robert Graysmith, who was an editorial cartoonist for the San Francisco Chronicle at the time. Robert Downey Jr. plays Paul Avery, a writer at the Chronicle. And Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Edwards play SF PD Inspectors Dave Toschi and Bill Armstrong. (Inspector Toschi was also the inspiration for Steve McQueen's Frank Bullitt in 1968.) Other notable performers include Brian Cox as Melvin Belli, Dermot Mulroney, Chloë Sevigny, Elias Koteas, Adam Goldberg, Philip Baker Hall, Charles Fleischer, James LeGros, an uncredited Ione (Say Anything) Skye and John Carroll Lynch as prime Zodiac suspect Arthur Leigh Allen.

I wasn't aware of Robert Graysmith's follow-up book, and so I was surprised when the film essentially implicates the killer at the end. Zodiac is not Fincher's most compelling film, but the local setting, familiar locations, and connections to the other San Francisco-based films made it an interesting watch on the big screen. 

So there you have it. After almost two years of silence, the Slaughtered Lamb Cinema was back up and running at least once a week for an entire year (and yes, we did watch some out-of-series films, too). Unfortunately, our plans for a soft opening for a 2022 Year-End Wrap-Up were scuttled when Covid landed, but we look forward to inviting friends back into the theater this year. And while this 52-film series is now complete, don't be surprised if we pop-in with a new film each week, as we continue to maintain the streak of keeping the theater running, even when only for us. Though don't expect us to try and stick to a similar schedule. The alphabet approach made for an interesting and diverse selection of films, but from here on out, I think we'll curate any selections based on interests that came up throughout this process, be it specific genres of films, or filmmakers in particular that we choose to delve deeper into. 

Thanks for joining us on this journey celebrating my 52nd lap around the sun!


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