The Narrator. -- Edward Norton
Tyler Durden -- Brad Pitt
Marla --
The Narrator can't sleep. He's been stuck in the same dead-end job for years at an automotive agency. His job is to investigate car accidents and determine whether or not it would profit the company to issue a recall.He has seen the most gruesome death scenes anyone is bound to see. And life is boring. The only joy he gets in his miserable existance is ordering useless furniture out of Ikea catalogs.This continues for a few weeks , until he decides to go see a doctor. The doctor tells him : "If you want to see pain , drop by St. Francis' on Thursday nights. That's pain." He's referring to a testicular cancer group. The Narrator goes , and experiences an epiphany. All he has to do is cry in a room full of people , and he sleeps like a baby. That is until the junkie drifter Marla starts encroaching on what he believes is "his territory". They fight over what disease nights they get , and eventually , they split up the week. But , The Narrator says : "Her lie reflected my lie.I never went back."And so , it's back to the daily grind. On a business flight , he meets an unusual man named Tyler Durden. Tyler opens his eyes to the world , showing him things he never knew about himself. After The Narrator's apartment is blown up in a mysterious accident , Tyler takes him in. They get drunk at a local bar one night , and Tyler tell The Narrator : "Hit me , as hard as you can." The Narrator obliges. They come to a realization : fighting is the best way to release pent-up male hostility. They start fights with each other on a regular basis. Pretty soon this becomes a featured attraction at the local bar. Then , Tyler has a stroke of genius. EXPAND. He creates a Fight Club. Men clamor to join , and the fun begins. Tyler soon loses control over the club , and over his own lust for power. I will not spoil the plot twist , but suffice it to say , many things The Narrator took as true are turned upside down.
This movie is sick In a good way. David Fincher's directing is top-notch stuff , with his stereotypical moody dark cityscapes looming over the characters. The dingy tint reflects The Narrator's turgid state of mind , and Tyler's audacity. The contrasts between The Narrator and Tyler are sharp , well-defined and superbly acted. Cinematically , it's full of difficult shots , tough-to-shoot angles ,and mesmerizing special effects. Dramatically , Norton and Pitt fit the roles to a T. Norton's version of a disaffected American twenty-something is poignant and true , while Pitt's brash , noisy , gruff Tyler Durden is over-the-top and almost comical. Though both actors have shown similar sides (see also : Norton in "Primal Fear" and Pitt in "Twelve Monkeys") , the combinations of nebbish and loud ,and cautious and boisterous makes for a awesome film. Here's where the ad copy comes in : I thought this film rocked. Straight out rocked. It is one of the best films I have seen since "The Matrix" or "Sixth Sense". It's a frenzied , masculine take on the male fear of losing power ,and it will stand tall as a proud moviemaking achievement. It's powerful , and at the same time , funny. It's larger-than-life , but it's also true-to-life.
All around A Plus.
Hey. Asshole. Go back to reviews , and nobody gets hurt.