Fight Club (1999) starring Edward Norton, Brad Pitt, Helena Bonham Carter, Meat Loaf, Zach Grenier, Richmond Arquette directed by David Fincher Movie Review

Fight Club (1999)   3/53/53/53/53/5


Edward Norton in Fight Club (1999)

Is Fight Club Overrated?

An insomniac office worker who finds himself hooked on going to group meetings to fill his empty nights meets a slick talking soap salesman on a flight and ends up not only living with them in a ramshackle building but coming up with a new aggression therapy. And so is born fight club and it catches on in the underground scene until things spiral out of control.

If I was to watch a popular movie once and say it is overrated would be honest but maybe unfair as maybe I wasn't in the right frame of mind for it. How about it I said I had watched a movie 5 times and my opinion didn't change and felt the movie was still overrated, I say that is giving it a fair go. I say this because that is how many times I have watched "Fight Club" looking for what makes this movie great and never once getting what everyone else sees in it. Now if you are one of those people who have genuinely watched "Fight Club" and found it as the great life changing experience then good for you I wish I could feel the same.

So why? Well it starts with a couple of things which Edward Norton's character says right at the start of the movie "you always hurt the one you love" and "I know this because Tyler knows this" and right away those words made me think, made me aware and made me think ok a few other movies which had explored the idea which I was thinking about. I won't say what it is that I thought just on the off chance you are here having not watch "Fight Club" having probably searched for "is Fight Club overrated" but it means that amazing twist which everyone goes on about that ends the movie is not really that amazing.

But there are other things which just didn't do it for me and David Fincher is a director who at times is a genius at others, well he isn't and unfortunately Fincher's excessive styling in "Fight Club", his embracing of the peculiar just became a road block to my enjoyment and interest. Now don't get me wrong as "Fight Club" by nature needs to be quirky but here the styling ends up dominating the story and whilst some might enjoy it, it isn't for me.

The one thing about "Fight Club" which impressed me was Edward Norton an actor who has this strange ability to be perfect for what ever role he takes. It is Norton who makes the movie just entertaining enough to keep me watching as he is dry but humorous.

What this all boils down to is that I doubt I will ever get the appeal of "Fight Club" and do you know there is nothing wrong with that. What I will say is that whilst I don't get the appeal and the style is at times too excessive for my tastes "Fight Club" isn't a bad movie.


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