Today sees the home release of Gone Girl on DVD and Blu-ray. I’m excited to check out the Blu-ray release of the film as it will come with a small “Amazing Amy” book, as well as a commentary track from director David Fincher. As far as special features go, that’s surprisingly sparse – especially for a film as already renowned as this one. But a Fincher commentary is a very informative and insightful one to experience, so it’s enough for me for now. With how successful this film has been, it’s hard to not imagine that there’s a much more extravagant release in the works for the future. Here are some other great home releases of Fincher films.
The Game – Criterion
Criterion released of two Fincher films now (the other being The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), and of those two, The Game is definitely the most deserving. Somewhat like Panic Room, The Game is an underrated gem in Fincher’s work, an impressive psychological thriller that definitely deserves a second look that is often afforded to films released by the ever distinguished Criterion Collection. The digital transfer was supervised by Fincher and DP Harris Savides, ensuring a pristine presentation. It features a commentary by Fincher and the crew as well as insightful behind the scenes footage along with an alternate ending. Criterion releases are typically the most definitive editions of the respective film, and that’s the case with The Game.
Alien 3 – Alien Anthology Blu-ray – Workprint Cut
It’s amazing that Fincher managed to have such a prosperous career after kicking things off with Alien 3, which is pretty much unanimously considered a failure. But one of the great things about film is that they stand to benefit from time. That was the case here, as the Blu-ray release of the Alien anthology features the assembly cut of the film. I haven’t seen it yet myself, but those that have seen it tell me the assembly cut is very impressive and a nice look into the early days of Fincher.
The Social Network – Blu-ray
Very few initial home releases have as much comprehensive and in-depth special features like this one does. There are two separate commentary tracks – one with Fincher, the other with Aaron Sorkin and the cast. There’s a small but very informative segment on how Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross created their iconic score. Small documentary sequences and dozens of interviews result provide you with every bit of behind the scenes insight you could possibly want to know about the film.
Zodiac – Director’s Cut
Zodiac is my favorite film of Fincher’s, and this release is a delight for fans of the film like myself. The few scenes that are added in thankfully don’t detract from what was already there, just complimenting the procedural aesthetic of the storytelling. There are three different documentaries – one on the making of the film, one on the case itself, and another on Arthur Leigh Allen. They all provide a comprehensive look into the whole mythos of the Zodiac Killer. There are two commentary tracks, one by Fincher and the other with Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr., Brad Fischer, James Vanderbilt, and James Ellroy. You always learn a lot from Fincher’s commentaries. He acknowledges how many small but specific liberties they took with the film in order to tell the story better, his own theories on the mythology of the Zodiac, and insight into how they created the film. One of the films on my Criterion wishlist is this film, but until that happens this is a wonderful release to have.
