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| Edward Norton stars alongside the ever-charismatic Brad Pitt. Fight Club (1999), Rated R for disturbing and graphic depiction of violent and anti-social behavior, sexuality, and language. |
But there is so much more to it--so much more that makes this film so difficult to internalize. It's social commentary, that's for sure. And it's funny--painfully funny. Funny in the same way seeing a man chopped up in a wood chipper in the movie Fargo (1996) is funny.
Our protagonist (Edward Norton), whose name is never revealed, is a tortured man with a severe case of insomnia. He goes to his doctor, asks to be drugged up, and is denied his wish. He pleads, telling his doctor how much pain he's in. The latter suggests that he go to a testicular cancer support group if he wants to see real pain. Maybe it's a joke--our protagonist takes him seriously. So he starts going and finds out that he gets a rush out of the pain that he's surrounding himself with. The doctor never prescribes him any drugs, but the support groups work just as well--he becomes addicted: the makings of a pain junkie.
He starts going to other support groups, surrounding himself with more pain. He adopts the name "Cornelius." He's finally able to sleep. But suddenly, something goes incredibly wrong. Another "faker" starts showing up at the meetings. Perhaps it is a little improbable that she shows up to every meeting that "Cornelius" goes to, regardless, it vexes him. Her name is Marla Singer (Helena Bonham-Carter), and she'll be more important later on in the film; her cold demeanor and unsettling physique reveal that much.
But now our protagonist's insomnia returns. Tears aren't as therapeutic when someone else in the room is faking alongside you. He confronts her, they come to an agreement, he goes on a business trip, meets a very charismatic soap salesman named Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt), and returns home to find that his home has been destroyed using home-made explosives. The very clever IKEA furniture that he's collected over the years is now nothing more than a charred heap of ashes. He calls the two people he's made more than superficial contact with: first Marla, then Tyler. He decides to stay with the latter and the rest is history.
Are all these events connected? Perhaps. The film's disjointed way of moving the narrative along plays at that a little. Maybe these are all random events. Maybe what matters isn't the journey, but the end result. In this case, our protagonist and Tyler create an underground fight club to combat day-to-day life. Tyler is an agent of chaos. Our protagonist is a man lost at home. Unexplainable circumstances bring them to meet each other. They click. They detonate.
From a technical perspective, "Fight Club" is a well made movie. David Fincher's direction is spot-on; the first act is propelled with charismatic wit, while the rest of the film is carried on the wings of unlikely turns of events and visceral occurrences. The violence isn't strictly speaking realistic, but it's grungy enough to the point where you believe it.
In terms of visual style, Fincher plays a lot with what the script gives him, and he does so quite successfully. I heard it said that you know you're watching a Fincher film if it's green. The litmus test doesn't fail for "Fight Club," but it's not distracting, like in the final two Matrix films.
Characters are well-portrayed. Edward Norton is vulnerable, Brad Pitt is confident, and Helena Bonham-Carter is creepy. Bonham-Carter tries her hand at an American accent. You buy it until she has to utter more than a few words, but it's forgivable.
In all, the film is well-made. Strangely enough, though I wasn't a fan of how the plot was presented in the Chuck Palaniuk novel of the same name, it works for me on screen. It's tight, and by the time you get to the end, you'll want to watch the film again. Well, maybe not, but you'll at least consider it. Just as I said to a friend of mine about Pulp Fiction (1994), this film is a tough pill to swallow, but once you do, it's totally worth it... Unless you're a completely, non-deranged human being.
