Review of The Game (1997) by Jason K — 05 Sep 2012

David Fincher's most underrated film, (never mind AlienÃ,³), this is a suspensful and mysterious thriller which has rich financier Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas), who has just turned 48, receiving a visit from his estranged brother Conrad (Sean Penn), who has a peculiar present for him. It's a game set up by a company called Consumer Recreation Services, the game begins, and it soon takes over Nicholas' life, bad and weird things start happening to him, and he becomes determined to get to the bottom of who's behind all of it. It's got imagery and moments that are typical of Fincher, he gets the best out of his actors, and keeps on piling on the twists and turns throughout the film. It's just as good as Se7en, Fight Club and Zodiac, well worth another look if you have seen it... ;).

David Fincher's most underrated film, (never mind Alien³), he chose this as his follow-up to Se7en (1995), and he effectively saved the project from a lifetime of development hell. If Fincher calls Panic Room his Hitchcock film, then this was his dry run for what was to come, this is a suspensful and mysterious thriller with many twists and turns and nothing is what it seems. In San Francisco, rich but emotionally cold financier Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas), has just turned 48, and he receives a visit out of the blue from his estranged brother Conrad (Sean Penn), who has a peculiar present for him. It's a game set up by a company called Consumer Recreation Services, with the promise that it'll change Nicholas' life. The game begins, and it soon takes over Nicholas' life, bad and weird things start happening to him, and he becomes determined to get to the bottom of who's behind all of it, it leads to Nicholas teaming up with waitress Christine (Deborah Kara Unger), who has something to hide, and Nicholas becomes a determined man to find out. It's got imagery and moments that are typical of Fincher, he gets the best out of his actors, and keeps on piling on the twists and turns throughout the film. It's just as good as Fincher's other films and it's well worth another look if you have seen it, as it seems different on repeat viewing.