Directed by: David Fincher Written by: Jim Uhls Chuck Palahniuk Starring: Brad Pitt Edward Norton Helena Bonham Carter Meat Loaf Jared Leto Zach Grenier

Favorite Lines from the Movie:

"You are the best single serving friend I ever had."

"Self improvement is masturbation"

"I want you to hit me as hard as you can."

"We need to do this again sometime."

"It’s only when we’ve lost everything that we’re free to do anything."

"Rich women were buying expensive soap that was made from the fat that was sucked out of their own ass"

"He was setting up franchises all over." (Imagined line afterwards, "Sounds just like Mason.")

Reviews

Dogburt

"Fight Club" ranks for me right up there with the year’s best films in terms of ability to make a statement, tell a story, make the viewer think, and have you leave the theater questioning what you just saw, with not all the answers easily grasped. After leaving the film, I had the strange feeling that I witnessed something that rung of the Stanley Kubrick style of film making, because afterwards I felt the same way as I did when I saw the movie "A Clockwork Orange." Likewise, I felt that this film was more successful in making its statement about the human condition than Kubrick’s "Eyes Wide Shut."

Let me point out what "Fight Club" is NOT. It is definitely not a date movie. It is not a movie about action sequences. It is not a thriller. It is not something that Jackie Chan would be in. It’s not a good movie to admire the physique of many chiseled action heroes (one look at Meat Loaf and his decidedly un-Ahnold pecs confirms this). So don’t go to see this movie and expect an uplifting message provided by Brad Pitt’s boyish charisma.

What "Fight Club" is, without giving away specifics, is an attempt to explain the release that is needed by the human spirit to remain alive. Think the movie "Point Break" on LSD with guys who can actually act. Everyone in the movie provides a convincing depiction of the consumer world gone wrong, and demonstrates what happens when the reverse is acted on without hesitation. It draws on the primal urge to settle disputes of discord in a fashion that has long been an effective means of resolution. Just take a look at hockey to confirm this. That does not mean that it is right, and the movie in no way condones this sort of action. Instead it explains it in a way that, deep down, we realize is a part of us and when is tapped into can be both deadly and liberating. It also has a dark and biting humor (my favorite) that underscores our cynicism. Witness the scene of a fight club member out on assignment trying to pick a fight with a priest- it is both hilarious and unnerving.

On the whole, "Fight Club" is sometimes difficult to watch and is not for everyone, but for those who feel the need to inquire about their internal freedom with life, it is a fresh and startling tale. Along with "American Beauty," I’d have to give it the nod as the most compelling film of the year.

Shankster

Wow! I have a few rules for movies that I try never to break, one is never see a Leonardo DiCaprio film this one's fairly self explanatory, Leo makes me sick. A second is sort of like the first, Steer clear of Brad Pitt films. I commonly get dirty looks from people when I say that but the reality of the situation is that Pitt commonly stars in films that are long, drawn out, and then have a totally screwed up ending, often the ending is so screwed up that it keeps you from enjoying the film. I know that's a little judgmental but it is typically true. Needless to say I am not a fan of Brad Pitt, that's not to say he isn't a brilliant actor, I am just not a fan of a number of his films. Why do I start my review this way, simple Pitt is brilliant in this film, but he is not the star, he is completely overshadowed by Edward Norton. Pitt plays the cocky, self-confident, psychotic he has become so adept at playing, but Norton plays the twitchy, downtrodden, insomniac with such authenticity and complete abandonment that it's hard not to see a bit of yourself. The character's are great, albeit a little extreme, but because of that they force you to relate to them. It's hard to say to much about the film without giving anything away so I'll try to sum it up this way: Great acting especially by Norton, bloody and a little gory(so skip it if you're squeamish), and a brilliantly written script with lots of little twists and subtleties to keep you fully involved. It's been more than 12 hours since I left the theater last night and I'm still playing some of the scenes back marveling at a brilliant line here, a hint of foreshadowing there, and the utter irony and psychosis of the climatic finale. Well worth the cost to see it and despite the blood and violence even my wife liked it.

Batman

The first rule of fight club is you do not talk about fight club. It's an important rule because if you have experienced Fight Club, you're going to want to talk about it and those who haven't aren't ready for what you have to say. This is a bold movie oozing with ideas. Some people are going to hate it and call it irresponsible. Some people are going to love it and call it thought provoking. I'll be very surprised if you find yourself somewhere in the middle.

The movie unfolds as a narrative. We are hearing the thoughts of a nameless young man. He works in a job he hates. He defines himself by the things he buys. He can't sleep. He tries to get help and a doctor tells him to check out a cancer survivors support group to see some real suffering. He goes and finds the group to be a wonderful release. Soon he's sleeping again. Life seems good to him until two people intrude on his life and wreck it. The first is Marla, a chain smoking goth girl frequenting the support groups for the same reasons he does. Her presence wrecks his new peace. He knows she's a liar and that makes him self-concious because he is a liar. The second person is Tyler Durden. Durden is a soap salesman and clearly a rebel. A strange set of circumstances forces the narrator to move in with Durden. Almost by accident they form Fight Club.

That's the extreme bare bones storyline. To tell you anymore would be criminal on my part. Again, the first rule of fight club is an important one. The plot exists to bring forth ideas. The idea that consumerism is an unhealthy lifestyle, ruining young peoples' lives. It turns them into passive mindless drones who never really live their lives, instead focusing on what they can buy. Fight club itself is a release from that. A punch in the face hurts like hell, but it makes you feel alive. It gets the adrenaline flowing. This proves wildly addictive and the two soon have a lot of company. Now a lot of people would have you believe this makes the movie irresponsible for glorifying violence. I don't see how you can watch these fights and find glory in them. These are not the stylized choreographed fights we are used to seeing in the movies. These fights are ugly, awkward and brutal. Blood flows, bones break, and the fighters experience a lot of pain. These aren't images that inspire me to go out and pick a fight.

The acting here is phenomenal. Edward Norton is nothing short of brilliant as the narrator. He utterly disappears into this character. You can watch him change and grow as the movie winds out and when he and you think you know where he's going, he heads somewhere else. Brad Pitt turns in easily his finest performance ever. Tyler Durden becomes a cult figure in the movie and you can easily see the character becoming an icon of sorts in real life. He is wildly charismatic and horrifying at the same time. Helena Bonham Carter does a good job but is heavily overshadow by the two stars. This is their movie.

Stylistically the movie stands alone. It's odd storyline, twisting plot, and spectacular shots weave an image that is indelible. Director David Fincher deserves a lot of praise for assembling this complex masterpiece. It is captivating and mesmerizing to watch. Those ideas made my brain work overtime trying to process them. We went to see this movie at 10PM on a weeknight. It's almost two and a half hours long. Despite the late hour we stood outside and talked for some time about the movie. Even after driving home I didn't go to bed for another hour. I couldn't sleep with my mind racing like that.

This movie is going to infuriate a lot of people and be heaped with praise from a lot of other people. I think that's great actually. A movie like this stirs debate about things like violence and makes people think. It refuses to let people sit back cozy in their lives. Debate breeds ideas and ideas advance us as a people. The real harm is when someone tries to stop ideas. I suggest seeing the movie and talking about the violence and its implications. It's a far better idea than our current culture of kneejerk reactions and throwing blame.

Sharky

This is a good movie. It is very well done. I do not know if I actually liked it though. I am not sure if I would want to see it again, but the effects and the plot are excellent.