“What’s the first rule of Fight Club?” — “We do not talk about Mank.”

Refusing to be called an auteur, David Fincher has certainly crafted his own style to become the master of the psychological thriller. But what exactly makes a Fincher classic? From his deftly choreographed camera movements, to his relentless number of takes and a fixation of grim colour schemes – we dive deep into world of the American director.

Much like his protagonists, Fincher is an obsessive perfectionist driven by the search for the truth. As if they’re carrying the burden of the world, can we view his characters as martyrs? Despite the overwhelming pessimism in Fincher’s films, we ask ourselves why do we still find a sense of hope in his filmography?

Check out Fincher Favorites screening at LAB111

Show notes

• America Cancer Society – Smoking Fetus (David Fincher, 1984)
• Matt Damon & Jack Nicholson many takes
• 5 Visual Aesthetics of David Fincher’s Mindhunter
• VFX breakdowns Zodiac
• Why is David Fincher a Genius? – Directing Styles Explained
• How David Fincher Hijacks Your Eyes
• David Fincher – And The Other Way Is Wrong

Films mentioned

(click on the links for tickets to screenings at LAB111)

• The Cell (Tarem Singh, 2000)
• The Fall (Tarem Singh, 2006)
• RRR (S. S. Rajamouli, 2022)
• Sick of Myself (Kristoffer Borgli, 2022)
• The Worst Person in the World (Joachim Trier, 2021)
• Dream Scenario (Kristoffer Borgli, 2023)
• Tomato Tragedy (Kiriko Mechanicus, 2023)
• Serpico (Sydney Lumet, 1973)
• Fight Club (David Fincher, 1999)
• Seven (David Fincher, 1995)
• Gone Girl (David Fincher, 2014)
• The Social Network (David Fincher, 2010)
• Zodiac (David Fincher, 2007)
• The Game (David Fincher, 1997)
• Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (David Fincher, 2011)
• Vogue – Madonna (David Fincher, 1990)
• Paris Is Burning (Jennie Livingston, 1990)
• Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (Richard Marquand, 1982)
• Mindhunter (David Fincher, 2017-2019)
• Alien 3 (David Fincher, 1992)
• American Beauty (Sam Mendes, 1999)
• Magnolia (Paul Thomas Anderson, 1999)
• Submarine (Richard Ayoade, 2010)
• The Double (Richard Ayoade, 2013)
• Panic Room (David Fincher, 2002)
• Wait Until Dark (Terence Young, 1967)
• Freedom – George Michael (David Fincher, 1990)
• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (David Fincher, 2008)
• Forest Gump (Robert Zemeckis, 1994)
• Suit & Tie – Justin Timberlake & Jay-Z (David Fincher, 2013)
• Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958)
• Eyes Wide Shut (Stanley Kubrick, 1999)
• The Killer (David Fincher, 2023)

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