Fight Club Blu-Ray Review

Rated R (Disturbing and Graphic Depiction of Violent Anti-Social Behavior, Sexuality and Language)

Running Time: 2 Hours & 19 minutes

Cast-

Edward Norton-The Narrator

Brad Pitt-Tyler Durden

Helena Bonham Carter-Marla Singer

Michael Lee Aday/Meat Loaf-Robert 'Bob' Paulson

Jared Leto-Angel Face

Zach Grenier-Richard Chesler

Rachel Singer-Chloe

Eion Bailey-Ricky

Evan Mirand-Steph

Thom Gossom Jr.- Detective Stern

Peter Iacangelo-Lou

Joon B. Kim-Raymond K. Hessel

Van Quattro-Detective Andrew

Markus Redmond-Detective Kevin

Michael Girardin-Detective Walker

Directed by David Fincher

"Welcome to Fight Club. The first rule of Fight Club is: you do not talk about Fight Club!"

Note: This is a review of the Steelbook Blu-Ray released in Germany in 2008, which was superseded by the "10th Anniversary Edition" released in the US a year later. 

David Fincher's "Fight Club" is certainly one of the strangest films I have ever seen with its powerful social message mixed in with bloody, sadistic violence but is it as good as fans make it out to be? I'm happy to report that it is despite a somewhat unfocused script. In fact, “Fight Club” is an excellent and unique film that warrants nothing but a full recommendation. It will change the way you perceive the world.

Based on the 1996 novel of the same name written by Chuck Palahniuk, "Fight Club" tells the story of...well, he has no name but we do know he is played by Edward Norton! This narrator works at an automobile company who travels to accident sites to see if a product recall is needed. He does this by using a simple formula and if the cost is less than the out-of-court settlement, a recall is issued. The Narrator also suffers from extreme insomnia. To cure this, he attends support groups (such as those recovering from testicular cancer) and finds weeping to be an emotional outlet for him, allowing him to sleep. Unfortunately, another 'tourist' named Marla Singer (Helena Bonham Carter) disrupts his routine and the insomnia returns. While returning from a business trip, the Narrator meets the charismatic Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt), who makes and sells soap. The two strikes up an immediate friendship and after a freak accident that causes an explosion at the Narrator's condo, Durden invites him back to his home on the condition that he hit him as hard as he can. The two end up enjoying a fist fight and soon they attract a crowd. A 'Fight Club' is born. I don't want to say any more about what happens because this is something that you have to experience for yourself.

"Fight Club" is one of those films that you cannot use words to explain. The film is incredibly funny at times, featuring some black comedy and satire to keep it from being depressing. An example of this comedy occurs at the beginning where Norton's character is hugged by an enormous man (played by musician 'Meat Loaf') with 'bitch tits,' and he narrates that by surrounding himself with people who are really suffering, he can finally sleep normally. Another scene that stood out is when Durden splices single frames from pornography into family movies that appears for only a split-second. 'Nobody knows that they saw it, but they did...a nice, big cock,' he remarks. What really made "Fight Club" turn into such a cult classic is the way the story attacks consumerism as Fincher's film is pretty much anti-everything. This theme will require a lengthy explanation so let's get the other stuff out of the way first.

If there's one thing that people remembered when they watched the film back in 1999, it's Brad Pitt's amazing performance as the insane yet clever Tyler Durden. I know a lot of people rag on the actor because he's 'too pretty' but you can't deny how excellent he is in the role and it's a mystery as to why he didn't even get nominated for an Academy Award. He is to "Fight Club" as Heath Ledger is to "The Dark Knight." Durden is just a man, but the way he speaks has a magnetism that is hard to ignore, making you blindly follow him and not question his motives. He always has a plan, and explains how people around him have become so obsessed with material possessions. There's a big twist near the end of the film that reveals his relationship to the Narrator but again, this is something you'll have to found out for yourself. Suffice to say, thanks to Pitt's excellent performance, you can't help but start listening to Tyler Durden. Edward Norton is also excellent playing the everyman character. He even looks like a man who's just going through the motions, watching as his life flies by and allowing his possessions to define who he is. I must applaud his commitment as while filming, he starved himself while Pitt worked out. There's a reason for this but it ties into the twist. Helena Bonham Carter offers a great performance as well and does a fine job with an American accent. If I didn't know that she was British, she seriously could've fooled me.

"Fight Club" is filmed in a unique visual style that often makes it look bland and boring. Scenes that have Durden take place in torn down, dilapidated settings that serve to highlight the Narrator's decaying sense of reality. Many scenes are incredibly dark and the only lighting used is the ones that were already there at the time of filming. Even the lurid color palette creates a sense of unease in the viewer. Unfortunately this style doesn't especially lend itself well to Blu-Ray. Making it worse is the fact that the master copy used wasn't in good condition as there are black specks that pop up constantly. Many of the night scenes look incredibly fuzzy. "Fight Club" on Blu-Ray is currently only available in Germany so you'll have to import it, but I highly do not recommend this due to the poor video quality. Fortunately, audio is solid as we're treated to life-like and brutal sound effects during the fist fights. It does come in a stylish steelbook but unless you're a diehard fan or a collector, wait until 20th Century Fox announces it for North America as "Fight Club" is by far the worst Blu-Ray transfer I've ever seen.

Now comes the interesting part. Just what is the point of Fincher's film? Well, that's just it because the point is left ambiguous to the viewer. The film attacks consumerism head on with the Narrator talking about how he is obsessed with the 'Ikea nesting instinct.' He owns all of this great furniture to present himself as a happy, normal person but in reality, he's nothing inside. At one point, he remarks that his refrigerator has only condiments but no food. Condiments only serve to make food taste better but they can't be actual food. We buy all this stuff that we think we need so that we can make ourselves appear to have substance, but in fact, we don't. Durden also says that men today are raised by an increasingly matriarchal society and many times, the film questions masculinity, such as when the Narrator points out a Calvin Klein advertisement and asks, 'Is that what a real man is supposed to look like?' This goes hand-in-hand with the Ikea nesting instinct that Durden sees as a result of men being 'feminized.' "Fight Club" also attacks advertising because it gives people a false sense that you're special. You're not special, your job doesn't make you special, the money in your bank account doesn't make you special, the kind of car doesn't make you special, and what you wear doesn't make you special. 'You're the all-singing, all-dancing crap of the world. You are not special. You are not a beautiful or unique snowflake. You're the same decaying organic matter as everything else,' he says. What of the fight clubs then? Well, since all the men participating have an emptiness inside, the fight club fills that emptiness, gives them a sense of purpose, makes them a man. So is it glorifying violence? Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't; this is something you'll have to decide for yourself. By the end, Durden has come to attack all institutions and value systems, seeking to simply destroy. Is he right that we're all controlled by flashy commercials and the objects we own? That we work so hard to make ourselves feel special but end up leading purposeless lives? Again, you'll have to answer those questions yourself. "Fight Club" is a film that has incredible depth and you could spend years nitpicking but it does make the story a little all over the place and you're left with a lot of questions. Perhaps this is what David Fincher wants. To make up our own damn minds!

Despite its unfocused plot, I see no reason not to give "Fight Club" a full score. It remains as Fincher’s magnum opus and one of the best films I've ever seen, due in no small part that it will change your perception of the world. Not a lot of movies do that and if you find out that a friend hasn't seen "Fight Club," tie them to a chair and make them watch it. It currently holds an 81% on Rotten Tomatoes but it ended up flopping at the domestic box office, making only $37 million. Only by factoring in the overseas gross did it cover its $63 million budget. “Fight Club” still remains as one of the most talked about films to this day, its themes dissected and debated or dismissed as nothing but a bunch of pseudo-philosophical babble. Nonetheless, there’s no denying its impact. You will come to obey Tyler Durden!

Final Rating: 5 out of 5

"It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything."