Movies Home / Entertainment Channel / Bullz-Eye Home

Buy your copy from Amazon.com

Fight Club (1999) Starring: Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Helena Bonham Carter Director: David Fincher Rating: R Category: Suspense

While I'm breaking the first two rules of Fight Club here (just by talking about it), I feel it's an important enough risk to take. This isn't your typical "Brad Pitt is such a cutey-pie" type movie. For some reason, if that's what you're looking for -- look elsewhere. This is a dark, grimy, violent, very masculine picture, and won't be popular with the fuddy-duddy/tender heart crowd. But if you can tolerate a little ugliness, and enjoy being provoked into thinking from time to time, don't miss this one.

"Fight Club" is similar to "A Clockwork Orange" in its violence and the nihilistic message that both impart, but neither really promote. The club begins with a couple of guys slugging each other; apparently in search of some way back to their manly, pain-feeling roots, and away from the numbing nothingness of their everyday, consumer-driven lives. It soon becomes a growing army of similarly disaffected men whose dreams have passed them by, beating the bejesus out of each other in weekly, bare-knuckled brawls. These merciless beatings induce more cringing than all 27 "Rocky" movies combined. But these fights are only the beginning. The club members quickly become zombie-like soldiers of a terrorist movement, led by walking anarchy himself, Tyler Durden (Pitt).

The first half-hour or so of "Fight Club" is pretty lame. You'll probably start thinking about flicking it off; but have faith. The ending is a huge surprise which turns the whole movie on its ear. But, unlike "The Sixth Sense," discovering the surprise in no way ruins the fun. "Fight Club" may, at times, be hard to look at, but you won't stop thinking about it.

DVD Review:
In direct conflict with the first rule of Fight Club, there are plenty of people talking about "Fight Club" on this two-disc set, with audio commentaries from Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Helena Bonham Carter and director David Fincher. Fans of this all-time great will also enjoy the deleted scenes and outtakes as well as several behind-the-scenes extras and a "Making-of" featurette. Bottom line, if you like "Fight Club," you'll love this loaded DVD set.