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Zodiac DVD Review

About.com Rating threehalf out of Five

By Rebecca Murray, About.com

Zodiac DVD

Zodiac on DVD

© Paramount

The Bottom Line

Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr and Mark Ruffalo lead the terrific ensemble cast of Zodiac, a mesmerizing crime thriller chronicling the still unsolved case of the Zodiac killer who walked the streets of San Francisco beginning in the late 1960s.
Pros
  • David Fincher's unique style is a perfect match with the material
  • Fine performances from the entire Zodiac cast
  • Following the police and reporters rather than the serial killer sets this one apart
Cons
  • No bonus features

Description

  • No bonus features at all. None. Zero. Zilch.
  • Rated R for some strong killings, language, drug material and brief sexual images
  • DVD Release Date: July 24, 2007

Guide Review - Zodiac DVD Review

The Story

Zodiac isn't the first movie to delve into the killings attributed to the Zodiac serial killer, but it does provide the most insight into the investigation and ranks #1 amongst the Zodiac films. The killings themselves are not the focus as much as the intense and obsessive work done by the detectives intimately involved in the case, writer Paul Avery (Downey Jr) from San Francisco Chronicle, and Chronicle cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Gyllenhaal).

Paul Avery and Robert Graysmith become involved in the case after the Zodiac mails one-third of a cryptogram to their newspaper. Inspector/Animal Cracker addict David Toschi (Ruffalo) and his partner Inspector William Armstrong (Anthony Edwards) are already hot on the case which will lead all parties involved down many dead end roads as they try to navigate through the maze of clues to the homicidal maniac who's dubbed himself the Zodiac.

The DVD

This one is as barebones as it gets. There's not a single bonus feature included on the DVD and that's a real shame. A commentary by Fincher or any of the cast would have made this a must-own DVD. As it is, this Zodiac DVD is one best rented. There's a Director's Cut DVD coming in 2008 with the missing bonus features and that's the one to pick up if you're planning on buying just one Zodiac DVD.

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