- Directed by David Fincher
- Written by James Vanderbilt, Robert Graysmith
- Stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr. , Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Edwards
- Run Time: 2 Hours, 37 Minutes
- Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNncHPl1UXg
Spoiler-free Judgment Zone
The horror from this comes from it being spun from real murders. But it’s more of a mystery and crime drama. The movie is long, and the real investigation was longer, but they kept it interesting throughout. There’s a large cast of talented folks, and it’s very well-directed.
Spoilery Synopsis
We start off on July 4, 1969, in the suburbs. A young couple goes to the burger place, but it’s too crowded. Instead, they go “parking.” A creepy black park stops behind them but soon drives off. Then he comes back, and the two kids think they’re going to be robbed; instead, they’re both shot full of holes. We don’t see who did it. The killer calls the police and reports the crime himself. Credits roll.
Four weeks later, Robert Graysmith takes his son to school. He’s a cartoonist for the Chronicle. His editor calls his work mostly “horrid” at the editorial meeting. Then the editor gets a letter from the murderer. The letter-writer knows things that the police hadn’t published. He also has included a cipher that he wants to be printed in the paper ASAP.
Paul Avery is the crime reporter, and he starts verifying the letter. It’s all true, so they decide to print the cipher on page four. Within a few hours, the FBI, CIA, and everyone else are working on decoding the cipher. Within a few days, someone decodes the message. The man sounds like a lunatic. Then another letter appears, and this time, he calls himself the Zodiac.
Six weeks later, another couple is out near the lake, and the Zodiac appears. He’s wearing black and has a crosshairs symbol on his chest. He makes the girl tie up the man and then the Zodiac ties her up as well. This time, he stabs them both. The man survives and describes the killer; Robert draws him.
A few weeks later, someone shoots a cabbie. Inspector David Tosch is called to investigate the botched robbery. The Zodiac soon sends a letter claiming the crime. Paul and Robert talk about the crime at the newspaper. The killer continues to send letters. He wants to call into a TV show to publicly talk with Melvin Belli, a famous attorney. The Zodiac calls in and says to call him “Sam.” The man definitely sounds like he has mental issues; it turns out to be a guy calling from a mental institution.
Robert does research and tells Paul what he learned; the code is called the “Zodiac Alphabet,” and it’s really old. A few more months pass, and Belli gets a letter from the Zodiac again. Several months after that, the Zodiac picks up a woman and baby alongside the road. “Before I kill you, I’m going to throw your baby out the window.” She jumps from the car with the baby, and they both survive. More murders happen over a period of time.
Paul Avery comes to the conclusion that the Zodiac may not have killed all the people he’s claimed. Maybe he’s lied about claiming a few random crimes. Four months pass with no more crimes. Paul gets a threatening card sent to him in the mail, and then he goes out to buy a gun. Everyone starts wearing buttons that say “I am not Avery,” including Avery.
Avery finds a murder from way back in 1966 that may be the Zodiac’s first murder. Or maybe not. Who can tell?
More and more evidence mounts against a former teacher who can write with either hand. He’s supposed to have explained everything to a friend a few years before all this started. Arthur Leigh Allen has a very weak story about his alibi for the first few killings. He wears a “Zodiac” brand watch. The handwriting expert rules him out.
One year later, Paul Avery isn’t looking good; he thinks he’s a marked man, so he’s an alcoholic now. Leigh Allen has moved to a different district, so now Tasche thinks he can get a search warrant in the new district. They make a good case, and the judge finally gives them a warrant. Allen’s place is a mess and infested with squirrels, some in cages and some not. They find guns and clothing similar to that of the Zodiac. Allen drives up, and they arrest him. Again, the handwriting doesn’t match.
It’s been long enough that movies are being made with ciphers with a killer named “Scorpio” (“Dirty Harry”). Robert talks to Tasche and says he knows he’s going to catch the killer eventually.
Four years later, Jennings replaces Avery, who’s been fired. Tasche’s partner, Armstrong, has put in for a transfer. He visits Paul and suggests that he write a book about the Zodiac. Paul is rude, so Robert leaves and goes to the library himself.
It’s now 1977, and Robert goes to see Tasche. It’s still an open case, but Tasche is the only one working the case; the Zodiac hasn’t been heard of in three years. He travels around and enlists the help of the police who worked on the case. Cue the research montage. He comes up with the theory that the Zodiac knew his first victim.
Robert goes to talk to Melvin Belli, and Belli’s maid says she talked to the Zodiac on the phone. The Zodiac told her it was his birthday. An article in the newspaper says that Robert is shopping around his book. He gets an anonymous phone call telling him the name of the Zodiac and the name of one of his friends. He also gets a call with heavy breathing, something the Zodiac was known for.
It’s now 1978, and a new Zodiac letter comes to the Chronicle, and this one mentions Tasche. The press claims that it’s a forgery written by Tasche himself. Tasche is removed from the homicide department in retaliation. Robert’s wife yells at him about his obsession; she’s afraid of the publicity.
Robert meets Bob Vaughn, a friend of the reported killer, Rick Martin. Rick left a sealed film canister with Vaughn but came and took it back later. The scene suddenly gets very creepy when Robert starts figuring out that he might be in the same room as the killer. By the time he gets home, his wife has taken the kids. She demands that he finish this.
Next, Robert goes to talk to Linda in prison. She was another friend of the first victim. She swears the guy she knew wasn’t named Rick; it was Leigh. There’s a connection between Leigh Allen and the first victim. Allen’s birthday turns out to be the same day as when Belli’s maid said. Robert tells all this to David Tasche, and they compare notes.
1983. Robert tracks down and talks to Leigh Allen.
1991. Robert’s book “Zodiac” is on the shelves. One of the survivors comes in for questioning and is shown a series of photos for identification. He picks out Leigh Allen’s photo as the killer.
We are told that after this identification, police went after Arthur Leigh Allen, but he died of a heart attack before he could be questioned again. Even though Allen was the only suspect, the case is still technically open.
Commentary
There’s lots and lots of explanation and exposition, but it’s all done very entertainingly with multiple cuts of different conversations between characters. It’s very long, but not as long as the original investigation, fortunately.
To make the film more honest, they didn’t recreate any of the murders where there were no survivors; only the ones where someone survived or witnessed were reproduced.
It’s got an amazing, huge cast, and everyone here is excellent. Jake Gyllenhaal plays Robert, but he seems creepy enough to play a serial killer himself. Was this a prequel to “Nightcrawler?”
It’s definitely more of a crime-mystery thriller than horror, but there are a few very tense moments and lots of blood and gore. Plus, it’s mostly true, so that part is scary.
It’s very long, but I was entertained throughout. I’m also wondering how much of this is factual and how much is fictionalized.