Every so often when a novel is adapted into a film, it is received poorly as the novel is far superior. In the case of Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club , director David Fincher brings this dark comedy to life in a such a way that has the viewer craving a second, third and fourth viewing. The deep yet ambiguous characters will draw anyone in to one of today's best satires of the modern era.
The unnamed narrator and main character (played by Edward Norton) is portrayed as a hopeless slave to modern conveniences. Norton excellently plays the apathetic, Joe Everyman, that any viewer that has ever worked in a cubicle will be able to sympathize with. The narrator's Down to the subtle facial expressions, tics and idiosyncrasies of the main character. The fear, rage, insanity and humor comes out in every aspect of Norton, and his disbelief in his own actions give this manic-depressive tragic hero a true sense of believability. Jack's dialect and inner monologue are perfectly rendered in monotone throughout the piece. A viewer gets the feeling that the story is being told to them by an old friend in the distant future, because emotion is so far removed from narration. However, the voiceover almost always seems natural, as if it is coming from Jack's mind at the time.
An insomniac, the narrator (commonly called “Jack” by avid fans) finds himself so completely devoid of emotion that he goes to therapeutic groups for those with terminal diseases. This is all until he meets the man that changes his life, Tyler Durden. Performed by Brad Pitt, the soap salesman that knows an whole lot about homemade explosives and social trends begins to rub off onto Jack in a very profound way. After Jack is forced to move out of his apartment, he has nowhere to go but Tyler's run down house on Paper Street. After a night of talking and a few drinks, Tyler's only request is to have Jack hit him as hard as he can. This sparks the idea for the fight club that eventually meets every day of the week, and turns into an underground cult that spreads all over the country. The truly blindsiding revelation and the all too shocking resolution to this story together are really what leave a viewer speechless, but it is the entrancing love triangle (if you could call it that) that draws the viewer in emotionally.
The off-beat, life-apathetic Marla Singer is played by Helena Bonham Carter. Her relationship to Jack began when she showed up one day at his Testicular cancer support group. Completely unsympathetic to the dying people around her, “Marla's philosophy on life is that it could end at any minute. The tragedy…is that it doesn't”. As a native Britton, Carter does an excellent job of adapting to an American accent. The sarcasm, suicidal tendencies, and sexual suggestion come out masterfully through her heavily shadowed eyes and cheap lipstick. Towards the end of the film, her frustration and confusion are culminated perfectly to the mood of each scene. While Carter is seen throughout the movie as being callous and almost insane, a second more complete viewing of the film can really allow true sympathy for an otherwise pitiless soul.
The costumes are really what define the characters, as some of the main themes of the story are corporate takeover and commercial living. Marla is always seen in her thrift store clothes (that she paid for selling stolen clothes), while Jack is dressed in his standard button down that he brings on every business trip. Tyler, hating all the models in Calvin Klein ads, dresses in old, sometimes worn out generic shirts, often with strange or outlandish designs. These things give each character their personality, along with yet another level of depth to the reality and believability of the movie as a whole.
The soundtrack, performed and written by the Dust Brothers, is experimental to say the least. From the opening scene, which begins with the camera exiting Jack's brain, the music is entirely unconventional in composition, with more sound effects than instruments. Throughout the film, the music is not only at the most intense of scenes, but in the most mundane, putting emphasis on the criticism of modern complacency. Though appropriate, the soundtrack does not flow in any way from song to song, leaving the moviegoer constantly intrigued and off balance, much like the plot itself. The final track in the movie is the Pixies' song “Where Is My Mind”, which aptly wraps up the film completely, and also leaves the viewer with the eerie sensation of drifting as the credits roll.
Shot with multiple flashbacks, Fight Club is directed very uniquely. While the story has a very real flow to it, the narrator often goes off on tangents to describe certain aspects of his life. In fact, the whole movie is a flashback in and of itself. The camerawork is interesting in that it cooperates with the narration of the story. As Jack describes something, a close up of the object, or possibly a computer generated image, is shown almost as one would a storybook. The director also included many aspects of Jack's imagination as real things to minimize his sense of reality and judgment.
Overall, Fight Club is probably one of the best dark comedies of its time. The film is artfully rendered with the flow, intrigue and purpose of an entire novel, while still attaining the popular feel of modern movies. As one of the most explosive movies of its era, the Norton-Pitt team made this movie a cult favorite with their lovably mischievous antics. With each subsequent viewing of the movie comes a deeper understanding of the characters and setting, making this movie a must-see for any movie lover, cynic or aspiring social reject.
