Can you name a David Fincher film? What is the first one that comes to mind, "Fight Club"? "The Social Network"? "Seven"? For a director who has directed music videos for the likes of Michael Jackson and Madonna it is incredible that his mainstream association rests with his feature length works. But then again, he is notorious for unconventional endings like such, and his theatrical release portfolio is nothing short of the best directorial work to come out of the 21st century.
Rifling through his body of work, his biggest films, including the titles mentioned in the first paragraph, prove to be such memorable cinema that a large portion of the mainstream audience overlooks one of his most underrated films. With titles like "Fight Club", "The Social Network", "Seven", "Zodiac", "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" and "Gone Girl" under his belt, the film "The Game" staring Michael Douglas has gotten very little recognition. "The Game" has splashes of themes every bit as thrilling and thought provoking as Fincher's most talked about work, and it deserves a louder public voice.
Staring Michael Douglas, Sean Penn, and the underrated Deborah Kara Unger, "The Game" emphasizes the turmoil and loneliness that can be brought on by insurmountable wealth, and breathes fresh air into the question what do you get the man who has everything. The movie starts on the birthday of investment banker Nicholas Van Orton when he is given a mysterious present from his estranged brother Conrad. The present is a service provided by the secretive organization CRS that puts the recipient into a real life game orchestrated to change the player's life. What Nicholas Van Orton does not know when he accepts the gift is that it could be for better or for worse. As the movie unfolds the lines of reality and the game are blurred leaving Van Orton in a state of suspense and paranoia.
"The Game" features a nice array of quietly beautiful shots of both the shiny and grimy parts of the San Franciscan city-scape. The visual structure of the film can easily be seen as a stepping stone towards Fincher's dreamlike vision for "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo's" American film adaption. The neo-noir imagery of "The Game" creates a beautiful scope for a film that proves to be one of the best examples of a film that emulates the noir period of the 40s and 50s. Within the late 90s scenery, comes excellent performances from Douglas and Penn, with Deborah Unger performance showing that her having few "big-six" studio produced films is a testament to the talent Hollywood can throw aside for safe bets on mainstream names.
In my opinion, with its opening weekend two years before the cult classic "Fight Club," "The Game" is Fincher's true feature length film debut, with "Alien 3" being a muddled mess thanks to studio meddling. I highly recommend this underrated film to anyone who loves a tasteful edge-of-your-seat thrill ride. You can find it online or on Starz on demand. It is a must see film for any David Fincher fan, and for anyone who loves an intelligent thriller. And who can argue enjoying either of those?
